How to Empower Women at Work
“When you’ve worked hard, and done well, and walked through that doorway of opportunity…you do not slam it shut behind you…you reach back and you give other folks the same chances that helped you succeed.” Michelle Obama
It was a grueling afternoon team meeting…The kind that makes you believe there’s not enough coffee (or patience) in the world, to make up for this humongous outflow of energy in the room. I was sitting right across from the other manager on the audit, refraining a strong urge to utter some choice words at him. Not only had he taken credit for my work and rudely taken over the conversation since the meeting started, he would constantly keep interrupting me…Talk about a meeting from hell…
I remember exiting the meeting room as fast as I could, files in hand. frustration all over my face, scurrying back to my desk. That’s when the Senior Manager called me. “Let’s take a walk!” “Oh great, now what?”, I started thinking. I haven’t been in the job more than a year, and after this disastrous meeting, I may not be any longer…
“I see what’s happening”, she said, looking at me squarely in the face.”And I empower you to speak up, and present your ideas. Don’t wait for permission, take your chance and go!”
I’ll never forget her words…Neither will I ever forget the warm sense of confidence that washed all over me afterwards. This was the first time, in years of grueling meetings, male interruptions, and stolen credit, that someone, especially an executive, officially said these three words that totally changed my career: “I empower you…”
Something powerful happens when someone else helps you claim the power that’s always been yours. Many times, especially as women at work, we’re conditioned not to see, acknowledge, or claim our own power. Is it any wonder then that we can’t write express it?
Empowerment is contagious. The more you give it away, the more of a ripple effect it has.
This executive single-handedly changed the course of my career. And I suspect the course of many a careers…Maybe because as a woman like myself, she was able to see through the veil of hesitation and quietness. Maybe because someone else had empowered her too. Or even maybe because she’s had to empower herself so many times, it became easier to extend the favor to others.
The point of the matter is, the simple fact of speaking empowerment into someone else’s career, and ultimately, someone else’s life, can change it for the better. Sometimes for the best. Especially when opportunities tend to be scarce for women at work. When everywhere we turn, we read about the confidence gap, the wage gap, and all kinds of other structural and societal gaps that leave us wondering how we’ll ever fill our cups and come out on the other side. And that’s exactly why we have each other…
And for the record, I never could shut my mouth much after that (as you can probably tell from my ramblings on this blog)…
Has anyone ever empowered you to be successful at work? What did they say to you that turned your career around, or helped you gain a new perspective on work? Please share with us…
To your success,
The Corporate Sis.
