After my first week at my current job, I turned to my boyfriend (We can introduce him now: Zack) and said, "I wonder who I will be within the company". Zack looked confused. I tried to explain that in my past experience people, and specifically women had a certain personality role to play within the workplace. Didn't he know what I was talking about?
This got me thinking, was I approaching my office relationships through the lens of yearbook superlatives? Do women need to fulfill a type or role at work to succeed? Let me provide some background:
My first job out of college was with a giant media agency. While the work I did was a huge building block in my career, the agency was also a catch-all for college graduates looking to determine what they wanted to do within the "industry". This included promoting a college-like atmosphere for socializing. So I took my usual role as social planner. I created really strong relationships outside of work, but not necessarily ones that showcased my hunger to succeed.
My second job was with an equally large media agency. I decided to change my role and strictly be about the job. Well, that only worked for a few months. I'm inherently social and hard-working... could I do both? I tried it out and managed to balance nights out with my co-workers and lots of late working nights. So it makes sense that I walked into my third job (this time at a kickass social marketing company) and was unsure of what role I would play.
But blog-readers, that is not the point. We as women are used to being categorized. As the party animal, the shopper, the gossip, the bookworm, whatever. Which is not fair. Women have proved themselves to span any type of stereotype. Look at Christine LaGarde who runs with IMF, Hilary Clinton as Secretary of State, or Sheryl Sandberg COO of Facebook. There are plenty more and can we categorize these women? No way. We can party and be hard-working. We can love clothes and also care about politics. The list should be never-ending.
xoxo
I get it, Rachel. I often joke that I'm the (Bugs) bunny in a snake pit. And I've never understood those people who equate my being quiet for being aloof or my not liking unrelenting sarcasm for a lack of humor (I prefer silly or dry wit).
ReplyDeleteIt's not only the stereotypes that corner us, it's the hypocrisy. Barbra Streisand once rattled off a long list of traits that were viewed as positive about men and negative about women. For example, a tough male boss was a strong leader. But a tough female boss was a bitch. An opinionated man was viewed as worldly. But an opinionated woman was considered domineering. You get how the game is played very quickly.
ReplyDeleteAs for stereotypes in the workplace, my experience is that they can be equal opportunity destroyers. Men can be typecast as well, such as the drunk uncle, the geezer grandfather, the bad brother...
You are absolutely right, however, that women still have to work harder to define their roles within an organization. The goal is to make sure that the perception of them is as unique as they are.