Women in the Workplace…..

A both common and uncommon topic in today’s working world is how women behave towards each other. It’s a pink elephant in this day and age, and boy do I love pointing out the pink elephants! They’re just so cute! :-P

The longer I work in the corporate world, the more I begin to see the true colors come out from every woman around me. At any level, you can see some evidence of it from every direction. I’ve seen friends thrown under the bus; I’ve been thrown under the bus. I’m sure that at times, I may be guilty of it myself. I want to make sure though that I clarify that I am really only talking about women vs. women.

But the root of my thoughts is this: why do we women do this? History builds the foundation of where we are. The history of women in the workforce dates back centuries but only made a mark to the early 1900s. The time span of both World Wars was when women really came out of their prescribed roles. Women’s place in society prior to that was to be homemakers, a full time job that was respected in many ways but definitely disrespected legally and socially. If you think about it, women ran entire households – we had to manage much more than just one person or one job. We fought for our rights – we emerged strong and prominent.

Yet, now we’re in, what I consider, a weird time. A redefining moment, if you may. 

There are so many debates out there: women starting families later in life, working women having children with demanding careers, women opting to not have children, women being more successful than men, women as single parents, and countless others.  I can’t speak to some of these debates, but I do try to learn from them. It helps me make some decisions or define my wants for my own future. Even if I don’t have my own family, I know that eventually when I do (hope I do?), I don’t want to be completely bogged down with my career but I can’t imagine a full time homemaker either. I’ll have to figure out a middle ground.

Women fight for their careers – we become combative to make a name for ourselves. Our jobs and/or careers (depending on how you look at), become our babies.  In my own company, statistics are mixed on how women fair out in the long run as leaders. Depends on your perspective really… Either way, it’s a tough road. We’re can be more emotional, but we have proven to be much more successful than men in many different situations. Note, I’m not saying better or that’s true all the time. Just that we have surpassed the stereotypes that were assigned to us for centuries.

So why, at times when we should prove to be effective workers or leaders, do we resort to childish behavior? I can’t really speak for others, so I thought about my own actions. How have I reacted at times that could be perceived as childish behavior? Here’s what I think that it comes down to. I think many women are so focused on making something of themselves, something happens to the self-orientation that typically grounds women to think of others. I am constantly amazed at the threats, real or fictitious.  It fascinates me because it results in some interesting events, rumors, and consequences. The pink elephant is there, but I’m not sure why?