28 Jul 2014

As we get further and further away from the days of Germaine Greer and burning bras, women and men are gradually being perceived on the same pedestal in the workforce. But, with equal pay for women still 75 years away according to the latest Oxfam report, we ladies need to start working what our mummas gave us if we want to bridge that gap sooner. Men and women differ in more ways than just what’s beneath our trousers, and in order to be successful in our endeavours – be it at university, in our jobs and careers, or life in general – we need to start embracing our femininity and using it to our advantage. No, I don’t mean wearing the sheerest, most boob-exposing top you own to your next job interview. What will get you further is emphasising those natural skills women possess that give us a bit of an edge.

1. We’re compassionate 

Having compassion doesn’t mean that women are only suited to ‘caring’ roles like teaching or nursing or homemaking (even if we do kill at all those jobs). Being compassionate means to care about a person or a thing or an issue and being able to throw ourselves into that completely. Commitment to work is every employer or professor’s dream, and ladies have that in bucket loads. Whether you want to make robots or make cakes, design fashion or design buildings, fight crime or fight cancer, being passionate about what you do means you’ll be even better at it.

Take Peta Searle, for example, whose love of footy allowed her to break through the male dominated world of AFL coaching, and sparked the debate about female representation in Australian footy today. Us women need to learn to be proud of our passions; so send that enthusiastic email, be thrilled at a new opportunity, don’t hide the tears that well in your eyes when you talk about a cause you really care about. It doesn’t make you seem weak; it makes you seem capable and motivated, and you’ll be surprised how far that can get you. 

2. We’re confident in our ability

We’ve all heard it a million times; women are more organised, women are better at multitasking. Of course, not all of us are blessed with these supposedly ‘feminine’ traits, but any skills you think you possess that might put you ahead of the curve, be vocal about! Modesty is important, but it shouldn’t stop others from seeing how awesome you are, and how much better you would be at something than someone else. Do you think women in politics get there by being passive and humble? God, no! They get there by trusting in their own ability and letting the whole world know of their strengths. I am woman, hear me roar!

3. We’re fearless

Just because some degrees or some careers are dominated by men, does not mean women don’t belong there. In fact, these are the places that could benefit most from some female energy. Recently, the push to get more women into IT roles has been trending nationwide, and as a result NAB has promoted three women into senior tech roles. Having both male and female perspectives is becoming increasingly more important in the Australian workforce, and if you are one of those girls entering into an area that might be considered ‘blokey’, the important thing to remember is to not be afraid. Your femininity is an asset, not a weakness, and make sure everyone knows it!

Let your friends,  teachers or potential employers know that they could profit from having a gal like you around, and that you can bring something to the party that none of the boys can.