For young women who are extremely driven and motivated to be successful in a meaningful, world-changing kind of way, the journey to said fulfilling career can be extremely confusing. Especially if there are too few women already in these positions showing us something we can aspire to.
Questions such as ‘should I take that job, over this one?’, ‘how do I get experience without experience?’ and ‘should I have babies now, or will that negatively impact my career?’ plague us constantly.
These questions are not due to a lack of clarity of what we want to do. We definitely know where we want to go. We just don’t know who we have to be to get there, or what we need to do now in order to be able to do what we want in the future.
If these questions were not difficult enough to answer with at least some degree of confidence, we have the added disadvantage of being female.
A government report released yesterday suggests that Queensland women outnumber and will outlive men, but will earn less. The 40 per cent of women who do manage to retire with superannuation will only have one third of the superannuation their male colleagues will.
According to the Workplace Gender Equality Agency, in September 2015 women were still earning 17.9% less than males. This gap increases to a whopping 21% as we get older (45 to 54 years of age).
So how will we have happy families, successful careers and retain our sanity? To be honest, it is not looking good – unless you somehow luck out and marry a man who is willing to sacrifice his own career for yours.
Although this is a nice idea, women’s participation in the work force has increased by 15.67 hours a month from 1997 to 2006, along with their total hours spent looking after the children. Hours on childcare duties for men, on the other hand, have remained exactly the same.
But what if we want our cake and eat it too? What if we want to change the world, and have a happy family? Is it even possible?
This is why I am writing to you, fellow females.
I need a mentor, and not just me, but so many other young women like me do too. If only there were more Layne Beachleys in the world.
We need more examples to learn from: when should we stand up for our rights, values and morals? When might it be better hold our tongues? When should we go for that promotion or pay rise? When is it time to quit?
We appreciate that you have done the hard yards and that you might have done it alone, but if we want to keep moving forward and pushing towards gender equality in the workplace, then sisters, we need your help!
Don’t get me wrong, males can be great mentors too and are extremely valuable in the fight against inequality, just have a look at the success of the #Hefor She campaign – but having the input of someone who has been there, in your same 7inch stilettos (or brogues, whichever you prefer!) and who has experienced the same disadvantages and obstacles and overcome them, is perhaps the single most powerful motivator that someone can have.
One of the problems is that there are not many women in that top line. The other problem is that often the women who have made it don’t seem willing to reach down the ladder and pull anyone else up.
I have been to a few talks about gender equality and what often saddens me is that sometimes the women at the top have this view that young female professionals should ‘just get on with it’ and ignore the discrimination and disadvantages, they just need to work hard enough and they will make it.
That may be true, but only for the few who are lucky enough. For the rest of us, a little guidance and encouragement would go a long way. Gender inequality does not exist because women don’t try hard enough.
So if you are a successful woman (however you choose to define success) you have a happy home and your sanity, then you represent hope. You are the hope of many young women, like myself, who want to be just like you.
As women, we need to support each other, believe in one another and give each other the step-ups we need as very few others will do this for us.
So if you are a successful sister, step out of your comfort zone today and into the life of a young-woman who needs your support. Never doubt what you have to offer, because you have more than you know – even your failures are valuable.
A cup of coffee or even just a supportive email, can go a long way.
Nicole Penman is a recent graduate of Psychological Science with Honours from The University of Queensland. She is a member of the UN Women International Women’s Day committee and works at The Parenting and Family Support Centre at UQ as Executive Assistant to the Director.
Nicole is passionate about equality and the empowerment of people in disadvantaged communities. Her future career goals include working in the field of Global Mental Health and Poverty Alleviation and attaining her Masters in Development Economics.
Twitter: @penman_n