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| I'm sure the cover worked perfectly for Maclean's |
To sum up:
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – It’s an interesting message on International Women’s Day: Man up!
This comes from Maclean’s Magazine, which suggests the strategies women need to embrace to get ahead are an awful lot like the ones men have used to get ahead in the past.
Associate editor Tamsin McMahon says career-advancing women today are ambitious, hiring household help, and finding a supportive spouse.
“[They are] choices that men have relied on for a long time to help advance. It’s this idea that you have help in the house; this allows you to focus on your career.”
But she adds it’s not always easy to separate family and work. “They’re mom at work, they’re mom at home… it’s a tough juggling act.”
“I think the argument right now that’s coming from some of the women who’ve made it to the top is to take some of the lessons learned from men and find a way to make them work in your life.” (source: News1130 )
This magazine sat on my table for two weeks while I thought about it. The article made some good points: that women too often opt out in their careers, settle for less or fail to reach their fullest potential because of choices they make. The glass ceiling may have been put in place by men, but women are not doing as much as they could to shatter it.
I agree.
However, there are a lot of people out there (men and women) for whom the glass ceiling is not an issue because they measure their lives by different standards.
In defense of people who are not (and do not want to be) CEO's of companies like Facebook, I offer up a different set of criteria to consider:
1. This morning, when the sun came through the window, I held my hand out to it to feel its warmth.
2. I started some seeds; today I saw them poking out of the soil.
3. I did something nice for a stranger today.
4. When my kids come home from school, the house becomes filled with their laughter.
5. My spouse lights up when she/he sees me.
6. I try to do things that are difficult for me.
7. When I wonder what I'd rather be doing with my life, I can't think of anything other than what I'm already doing.
8. I try to have a positive influence on other people.
9. I treat others the way I want to be treated.
10. I say 'yes' more than I say 'no'.
Rather than fretting about the glass ceiling, maybe we need to change how we measure success.
