“How wrong is it for a woman to expect the man to build the world she wants, rather than to create it herself?”― Anaïs Nin
What do Women Want? I always wonder who asks this question, a man or a woman? Beyond the inquisitiveness underlying in the above question, it raises a general perception of gender roles. Such a question wouldn’t arise in a society that has found its perfect equilibrium.
The essence of the question arises from the ancient concept of gender role division of man as provider and protector and the woman as the caregiver. The moment we tend to hear the name of a woman, our thoughts fit her into a frame of either a mother, sister, wife or daughter. We seldom imagine her as an influential leader in the corporate or business world. This traditional view of the position of women in society is so deeply ingrained that it is back breaking to change this mindset.
Now the question is “Who is responsible for this?”. Our tendency is to blame the men in a patriarchal thinking society. But giving this a bit of thought I came to a juncture where I asked myself if it is really the men around us who are holding us back or are we women subduing ourselves and making men the scapegoats. Today’s reading of equal rights for women is again a misplaced norm rooted in the concept stated above.
The reality is that women have always been equal to men, in their own ways. The futile fight for equality only reiterates and gives a wrong message of subordination. The word should be the empowerment of women, and the efforts and endeavor should be focused to open their eyes to the power within them. It is about co-existence in harmony with men, while equally respecting their roles in bringing in such a harmony. This co-existence will only help in reinforcing a sustainable social system.
In a world where concepts are not aligned with gender bias, women empowerment is to seek and analyze the right positions, guide the underprivileged and convey right messages through right achievements.
Women can be as great as men at what they do but the one major thing that pulls back is the fact that they may have recurring moments of self-criticism and self-doubt in their competence and it’s not something to be complained of, it’s a part of the way a woman is created as she is emotional beyond being logical.
They have all the confidence in the world in areas of their lives where they have put their heart and soul but they don’t feel it in their bones sometimes in the heat of the moment they live through. That breakthrough moment here lies in her ability to rise above those moments to become free of this fear of self-doubt and when the woman around us will liberate themselves from perfectionism to become more strategic and diplomatic, they will start seeing themselves as someone confident even to take calculated risks, build interpersonal relationships, gain the confidence of senior leaders and create that meaningful change.
Discover the power of vulnerability, be self-compassionate, be REAL, find the courage to take work to the next big level, lead with authenticity and passion, discover the vital and sensual power of feminine expression, form your own circle where you can keep travelling that will support you as a leader, integrate with nourishing practices such as yoga, dance, and art and be that WOMAN you always wanted to be.
It’s not about competing and it’s not about making a woman equal to a man. Throughout my life, I had the opportunity to meet up with various women in everyday life who have broken the barriers that we put before ourselves and these life experiences have something to teach each one of us.
Feminism is a very strong word, it is the belief that women are and should be treated as potential intellectual and social equals to men. But the way I look at it, feminism is not about outperforming men but it’s about preparing women to come out of their shell and utilize their hidden potential to do great things. This basic idea of feminism revolves around the principle that just because human bodies are designed to perform certain procreative functions, biological elements need not dictate intellectual and social functions, capabilities, and rights. Fuel up the league of the Extraordinary Women and wait for the Next Generation Revolution.