I want every girl to dream a life of her dreams .....

I want every girl to dream a dream of her life and I want that dream to become a reality.

I want her to dream a dream with all her innocence, imagination and freedom.

I want her to become who she wants to be: a home-stay mom, a doctor, a singer, a scientist….Anything she wants for herself.

Or, as my 5 year old dreams: a chocolate factory girl boss!!!

When we are little, our imagination is limitless. We are not restricted by the expectations of our families or society, color of our skin or our gender. Yet, this changes as we get older.

Let your kids be kids, respect and foster their dreams and let them believe in the world where the rainbow unicorns will show themselves as long as we believe that it is possible.

Thank you talented Dena Ackerman for making this illustration for EpiLynx by Dr. Liia Skincare and Cosmetics. I love what it represents!

Women and Work

Women’s representation in the corporate world isn’t improving in leaps and bounds. Not even in leaps or bounds. Sadly, it actually hasn’t improved much at all in the last few years.

At least that’s one of the top-level findings of the 2018 Women in the Workplace report released by McKinsey & Company and LeanIn.Org.

This Women in the Workplace report analyzed pipeline and HR data from 279 companies in North America that together account for more than 13 million workers. 

Here is a short summary.....and it is not pretty

1. Men Hold 62% of Manager Positions to Women’s 38% 

And the 'higher' you go, the worse it gets. Only 22% of the women hold C-suite positions. 

And it’s not because women are leaving their companies or the workforce. The report actually also found that these women and men are stepping away from jobs and careers at nearly identical rates.

2. Women Are Twice as Likely to Be Mistaken for Much More Junior Employees and More Likely to Deal With Discrimination

While being a Vice - President in my Medical Affairs and Global Ethics and Compliance, everytime someone asked me what I do, they immediately added an answer for me: are you a sales rep? 

Women are also nearly twice as likely to report needing to provide more evidence of their competence, and are more likely to have their judgement questioned in their area of expertise and to be the targets of demeaning remarks.

Also, In total, 64% of women said they faced microaggressions at work—with an even higher rate (71%) of lesbian women saying the same—compared to about half of men.

The worst thing is that these experiences add up. Women who experience these things are three times more likely to consider quitting their job...which they do.

3. Women Are Far More Likely to Be “Onlys” and Suffer More for it When They Are

About a fifth of women reported that they’re frequently the only woman (or one of the only women) in the groups of people they work with at the office. 

And then there’s the pressure that all of us feel. “With everyone’s eyes on them, women Onlys can be heavily scrutinized and held to higher standards,” the report says. They often feel as though they represent an entire group, and that if they fail, the entire group will be judged along with them.

4. Women Negotiate for Raises and Promotions as Often as Men Do

We always hear that we need to ask for a raise and not be afraid. Well, we do!

This is the common perception: women just don’t negotiate as much as men do. The study suggests that in corporate America in 2018, that’s just plain wrong.

In fact, in the last two years, slightly more women than men reported negotiating. While 29% of men had negotiated for a raise, 31% of women had done the same. And 36% of men negotiated for a promotion compared to 37% of women. Guess who got it???

5. Women Are More Likely to See Gender as an Obstacle to Advancement

Lastly, it’s not just that there are fewer women the higher up you look, or that they’re promoted less frequently than their male peers. Nearly a quarter of women, but only 8% of men, believe that “their gender has played a role in missing out on a raise, promotion, or chance to get ahead.” And it is true.

Also, if you dig a little deeper, women are also less likely than men to believe that their workplaces are fair, with black women being the least likely to agree that “the best opportunities go to the most deserving employees” or that promotions are “based on fair and objective criteria.”

6. Diversity is a Priority! Is it though?

The vast majority of companies included in this report say that gender diversity is a priority. However, unfortunately, those statements and some of the actions individual organizations have taken aren’t translating into any significant change in the overall numbers.

What can you do?

You don’t have to be a CEO or the head of HR to start making change. If these statistics leave you with a bleak outlook, well, we’re right there with you. But remember that there are small things you can do as a manager or colleague (like these and this) to help push for gender equality at your office, starting today.

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“To make a difference in someone’s life, you don’t have to be brilliant, rich, beautiful, or perfect. You just have to care enough and be there.” Anonymous