Tag Archive for: Guest Contribution

Avoid These Four Leadership Failures To Retain Employees Through The Great Resignation

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Great ResignationFor more than a year, the employment world has experienced significant upheaval as millions of workers make a mass exodus from the traditional workplace: a phenomenon now commonly called ‘the Great Resignation’. Women leaders who recognize and avoid four common leadership failures in the workplace will be better placed to retain their best employees through these turbulent times.

World-wide, leaders are grappling to understand what is fueling ‘the Great Resignation’. Also known as ‘the Big Quit’ and ‘the Great Reshuffle’, this is an ongoing economic trend in which employees have voluntarily resigned from their jobs en masse since early 2021, primarily in the US.

Research into this phenomenon that is wreaking havoc in the employment world suggests that many people are rethinking their careers, seeking a better work-life balance, facing up to long-endured job dissatisfaction, and preferring the flexibility of remote work.

As ‘the Great Resignation’ unfolds, there has never been a more important time for business leaders to think smart to ensure their work environment appeals to the post-Covid generation of workers.

Here are the four fundamental leadership failures that drive good employees away. Recognizing and rectifying these leadership failures will provide women leaders with an edge to help them retain good employees amid a mass exodus.

Rectifying leadership failure 1: Treating employees as the primary customers

The first crucial leadership failure is not recognizing that the employee is actually the primary customer.

Employees are initially drawn to work for a company because of various reasons, such as the company’s reputation. Ultimately, however, good employees stick around because of how well a company looks after them.

 Employees should therefore be treated as the primary customer. This means that each employee should be treated, cared for, managed, and responded to in a way that is consistent with how the company wants its customers to be treated.

Not only does it set a good example to manage employees this way, but it also increases one of the most important assets of any company: credibility, and the trust it brings. Employees want to work with and for a company that they can trust.

Rectifying leadership failure 2 – Recognizing leadership is not management

Another crucial leadership failure is not recognizing the difference between leadership and management.

Most companies have a management culture, which is not the same as proper leadership. Management is important and is a part of leadership responsibility. Managers have to make people follow, but leaders make people want to follow. Managers bring about compliance, but what leaders are able to create is buy-in, and this increases the likelihood of employees bringing their best self to work.

Recognizing the difference between management and leadership not only increases the likelihood of recruiting and retaining good employees, it also increases the chances of having a team that gives their best effort and go beyond the regular call of duty.

Rectifying leadership failure 3 – Realizing valued compensation is not just financial

The failure to recognize that finances are not the only form of valued compensation is a third common leadership failure today.

This is a recent development and is clear when considering the work patterns of the Millennium generation. This is the first generation in some time that does not out earn the previous generation. And it’s not because this generation is not capable or competent, but rather because they value some things more than money, such as flexibility, being part of something bigger or being valued as individuals.

Whereas paying employees so well that they tolerate toxicity in their working environment – often called ‘golden handcuffs’ – may have worked in the past, but will not work in the future.

Rectifying leadership failure 4 – Recognizing that EQ is the IQ multiplier

Last, but certainly not least, is the leadership failure of not recognizing that EQ (Emotional Intelligence) is the IQ (Intelligence Quotient) multiplier, especially now during ‘the Great Resignation’. 

It’s not that employees are avoiding work, or that they prefer to stay at home, but rather that many have had a glimpse of what it’s like to work in peace and don’t want to return to a toxic work culture.

For this reason, building Emotional Intelligence is a core leadership competency. Fortunately, building EQ is possible, and requires attention to each of the four qualities of EQ, briefly described below.


The four qualities of EQ
  1. Self-awareness, referring to how well you are aware of yourself as a leader.
  2. Self-management, which is the ability to manage yourself based on what you know about yourself.
  3. Social awareness, or the ability to discern the difference in others’ relationship management approaches.
  4. Relationship management, which is determining how different people communicate, comprehend and are motivated, and the ability to lead and respond accordingly.

In a post-COVID work world, dominated by ‘the Big Resignation”, being an emotionally intelligent leader – able to manage yourself and others – is key and critical to recruiting and keeping good employees.

By: Dr. Dharius Daniels is an emotional intelligence expert, author of Relational Intelligence: The People Skills You Need For The Life Of Purpose You Want, and former professor at Princeton University.

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Women in Facilities Management: An Opportunity to Lead?

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women in facilities managementIn May 2020, CNBC celebrated how the number of women running Fortune 500 companies hit an all-time high, with 37 such female CEOs, compared to 33 the year before. The actual state of affairs remains that as a group most women continue to struggle to attain an equal footing in managerial and leadership positions across most industries at the same rate as men.

A 2020 report by the ILO painted a discouraging picture: the report found that only limited progress had been made for the full and effective participation and equal opportunities of women in leadership positions in the workplace.

The report, prepared for the Empowerment and Progression of Women’s Economic Representation (EMPOWER), found that was true of every country in the G20, which includes the United States, over the past 10 years.

It gets even worse for American working women regarding the gender-based quality of their working environment, with a 2018 survey placing the United States a lowly 20th out of 29 OECD countries in the so-called ‘Glass Ceiling Index.’

“Pink” vs “blue” jobs

In a 2019 report, The Economist concluded that, even with strides made by women in typically ‘male’ industries, the tendency in the U.S. was that men still tended to pick “blue jobs” while women still opted for “pink jobs”. This, unfortunately, seems to prevail in the facilities management industry.

Women in Facilities Management, the only professional organization in the U.S. focused solely on furthering the advancement of women in commercial facilities management, notes that “…even today, facilities management continues to be one of the most male-dominated career paths”. The same organization cites a recent study that found that men still outnumber women in facilities management leadership roles by an astounding nine to one.

For the record, male-dominated occupations are those that have 25% or fewer women in them, which could certainly describe the facilities management industry in the U.S.

Benefits of more women in facilities management

Generally, there are many benefits to having more women in management positions. A major survey of 745 female and male corporate leaders conducted by the Center for Creative Leadership found that workplaces with more women tended to be better to work for all employees, regardless of gender. Employees in those organizations also felt more dedication to their organization and found their work more meaningful work. Interestingly, they also suffered less from burnout.

Industry experts have asserted that women could actually be uniquely qualified for leadership roles in facilities management. How so? It mostly boils down to emotional intelligence (EQ). Women, who tend to have higher EQ rates than men, benefit from attributes such as self-awareness, self-management, strong social skills, and, very importantly, empathy.

Even for a mostly technical, ‘nuts and bolts’ industry such as facilities management, every one of those attributes can only be beneficial for employees, resulting in higher productivity rates and overall efficiency. This is backed by research specific to the industry that found that gender-diverse teams make better decisions and are better at complex problem-solving. It was also shown that having more female leadership resulted in improved work culture.

Case studies: successful women in FM

Fortunately, there is a growing number of American women who have risen to leadership positions within the FM industry. This only bodes well for the industry. Below are three such case studies:

Case study 1: Cheryl Carron

Cheryl Carron is the Global Operations Lead for Integrated Facilities Management (IFM) and Experience Services (ES) for JLL Work Dynamics. She leads a global team of experts that enable the delivery of IFM and ES products and services to the company’s clients worldwide. Charron has had a career spanning nearly 30 years in real estate and integrated facilities management. Prior to joining JLL Work Dynamics in May 2021, Cheryl served as President of IFM, North America, for Sodexo, the latter of which has won numerous quality workplace-related awards in recent years.

Case study 2: Elizabeth Vasek

Elizabeth Vasek is a facilities manager at the Ford Foundation in New York City. She has openly discussed how she encountered a lot of “mansplaining” early in her career, which included men explaining technical terms to her in a patronizing tone. She did find this intimidating but found that she could overcome these sexist obstacles by asserting herself and not being afraid to ask questions when needed. She found that having a mentor and being part of a network of fellow women professionals helped immensely in building her knowledge and growing her self-esteem.

Case study 3: Jill Frey

Jill Frey is the owner and president of Cummins Facility Services (CFS), a national multi-faceted facility management company based in Marion, Ohio, that services Fortune 500 companies across the US. CFS is a 100% female-owned enterprise that provides janitorial, landscaping, snow removal, HVAC, security, floor care, and light maintenance services to clients in various industries. Frey took over managing the family business in 1994 and turned it into the FM success story that it is today.

“Every ceiling, when reached, becomes a floor”

In the conclusion of this article, it’s worth noting what Michelle Bachelet, the former President of Chile, once said: “Educational equality doesn’t guarantee equality on the labor market. Even the most developed countries are not gender-equal. There are still glass ceilings and ‘leaky pipelines’ that prevent women from getting ahead in the workplace.”

Her analogy of glass ceilings and leaky pipelines seems tailor-made for the facilities management industry.

It’s an industry that will undoubtedly benefit from a growing and more equitable number of women in leadership roles. And every woman in the FM industry would do well to remember the words of the brilliant author, Aldous Huxley: “Every ceiling, when reached, becomes a floor.”

Bryan Christiansen is the founder and CEO of Limble CMMS. Limble is a modern, easy-to-use mobile CMMS software that takes the stress and chaos out of maintenance by helping managers organize, automate, and streamline their maintenance operations.

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OP-Ed: Six Hallmarks Of Rebuilding Strong Relationships at Work

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relationships at workAs we come out of the pandemic, rebuilding strong relationships at work will require special attention. Strong relationships are crucial for success and satisfaction – they determine the extent to which our managers, direct reports and even colleagues outside our area provide us the information, resources, and support we need as well as their openness to influence and willingness to work out difficulties.

Those relationships have suffered during the last 18 months. Tasks have been more foregrounded and personal connection backgrounded, as Zoom exhaustion, phone and email replaced the informal in-person contact that often builds connection.

Returning to working in person creates opportunities to build and rebuild strong, functional relationships. And there are challenges. We can’t just “flip a switch” and return to how it was before. Jobs have changed, and so have our needs. Some colleagues left and new ones were hired who we haven’t met in person. Some are happy to be back, others aren’t. Old habits and approaches might no longer work. We feel pressured to make up for lost time, leaving us without the luxury of letting new relationships develop over time. What to do?

We have studied what it takes to proactively build strong relationships quickly at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business for decades and know that relationships exist on a continuum from contact with no connection/casual to closer/more personal and ultimately to what we call exceptional. There are six hallmarks to moving along that continuum.

Six Hallmarks of Relationship Building

The first is I can be more fully myself and so can you. With someone new we tend to be cautious. As the relationship develops, we disclose more, which decreases misunderstandings and increases ways to connect. It also encourages the other to share, since disclosure tends to be reciprocal.

This relates to the second hallmark: both of you are willing to be vulnerable. What can I do to encourage you to disclose besides initiating? I can learn how to ask questions that convey I really want to know you and what matters to you. Reciprocal sharing and vulnerability build trust and understanding.

Disclosure feels risky. The third hallmark is therefore trust that what I share will not be used against me. That trust is built over time as you each take incrementally larger risks in becoming known to each other.

Fourth is, a willingness to be honest with each other. Do I know that you mean what you say so I don’t have to read between the lines or worry about what you are withholding and vice versa?

As we share more of ourselves, deepen our relationship, and work together, disagreements are inevitable, and conflicts might emerge. The fifth hallmark is dealing with disagreements and conflict productively in ways that further build the relationship.

The final hallmark is both of us are committed to each other’s growth. This may require raising difficult issues and giving challenging feedback, in service of each other’s learning and development.

Applying the Hallmarks In the Office

As we emerge from the pandemic, here is how these come into play. You have just returned to working in person and someone new has joined the team who you’ve never met or worked with. There are also team members with whom you are at the “mere contact” end of the continuum and others with whom you are a bit farther along. With some you are close. Maybe you have mixed feelings about some of these people. A couple of incidents during Zoom meetings annoyed you, which you didn’t raise. Time and performance pressures necessitate you move these relationships along the continuum to functional and robust quickly.

There are multiple ways to develop relationships and what is effective with one person might not be with another. With the new hire, you might start with sharing more of yourself as well as finding out how they like to get work done. For those where the relationship is not strong, talking about how each of you want to relate might help. In those cases where you’ve had negative interactions, it might be important to have an honest conversation about how to move past that and explore what there is to be learned.

People also differ in how they like to get work done. Some like to plan first, others like to take action to gather early data. Some are comfortable with risk, others more cautious, and so forth. Each of us has a strong preference for our style and yet organizations need them all.

In strong relationships we each leverage our style and work together productively. What do we do with conflict that arises when our styles differ? We learned firsthand when working together. David is a divergent thinker, always coming up with new ideas. Carole is more convergent and wants to “cut to the chase.” In discussing this openly, we realized we needed each other. If David was dominant, we might never have finished our book – if Carole’s was, our final product might not have been as good.

Returning to the office will require we double down on efforts to establish new relationships and reestablish previous ones. We can’t afford to “just let things develop.” We will have to make more intentional, conscious efforts. Doubling down requires paying even closer attention to how others get their work done and talking openly about preferences. We may need to be explicit and proactive. “I’m glad to respond to your requests, but it works better for me when I have advanced warning” could be all it takes.

Doubling down also means becoming aware of and willing to discuss entirely new issues, such as people’s preferences for in-person, hybrid or working at home for health reasons. We may need to be clearer about how tasks are to be divided up and handed off. Learning to empathize with someone whose pandemic experience (and post pandemic reality) is very different from ours will also matter.

We’ll need to respond differently to small annoyances, which are more likely when starting or reestablishing relationships. Your way of working bothers me a bit. But rather than just shoving my frustration under the rug and blaming you, this could be a sign we have something to work on and an opportunity for mutual learning and a better relationship.

To do this we will have to acknowledge the legitimacy of different approaches and further develop our problem-solving skills. It is less useful to try to convince the other and more useful to jointly explore what will work for both of us. That process, rather than distancing us, can further reestablish healthy work relationships and build even stronger ones.

Everything is unlikely to work out from the beginning, even with proactive outreach. Building and rebuilding relationships is a process that requires learning from what doesn’t work as much as from what does. It demands persistence, intention, and patience. But quickly building and rebuilding stronger relationships is well worth the effort.

David Bradford, Ph.D. is the Eugene O’Kelly II Senior Lecturer Emeritus in Leadership at Stanford Graduate School of Business, where he helped develop Interpersonal Dynamics (aka “Touchy Feely”) as well as much of the school’s leadership curriculum. He is the author of numerous books, including Managing for Excellence, Influence Without Authority, and Power Up. He lives in Berkeley, California, with his wife of more than fifty years.



Carole Robin, Ph.D. was the Dorothy J. King Lecturer in Leadership and Director of the Arbuckle Leadership Fellows Program at Stanford Graduate School of Business before co-founding Leaders in Tech, which brings the principles and process of “Touchy Feely” to executives in Silicon Valley. Prior to coming to Stanford, she had careers in sales and marketing management and was a partner in two consulting firms. She lives in San Francisco, California, with her husband of 36 years.

A fuller description of these six hallmarks and how to use them to build relationships can be found in CONNECT: Building Exceptional Relationships with Family, Friends, and Colleagues by co-authors David Bradford and Carole Robin. Crown Random House, New York. 2021. Their book also contains the lessons of “Touchy Feely” that thousands of students have consistently described for decades as life changing. Available in hardcover, audible and Kindle versions HERE.

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The Power of the Word No

Guest Contributed by Janelle Bruland

Isn’t it funny that one of the most important words to say is also one of the hardest? One simple word: no.

Yet, to say it brings up a flood of feelings – guilt, defensiveness, a fear of offending. Sometimes the feelings flash by so quickly we don’t even notice what they are. We just know that we don’t want to say that one little word. Yet, the ability to say “no,” to set boundaries and build a structure that works for us, is one of the most important tools we can add to our arsenals to successfully create our best lives.

The word “no” should be one of the most important words in a leader’s vocabulary. Here are two strategies to be more productive and have space in your life for the things that matter:

1. Recognize What is Holding You Hostage

2. Break the Chains by Learning How to Say No

What is Holding You Hostage?

There is no doubt about it. It is becoming increasingly difficult to separate ourselves from the onslaught of incoming communication and ceaseless activity that seems to come along hand in hand with success. Demands on our time stack up. People who need us invite us to their meetings, ask us to sit on this committee or that board, and ask our opinions. For a minute or two we feel good about being able to help. We continue to say yes, and add just one more thing to our calendar. But then, there comes an inevitable breaking point, when we find ourselves held hostage by our own schedule. Suddenly we find ourselves overworked, overcommitted and overwhelmed.

Today, the average knowledge worker is interrupted every 10-12 minutes by some form of communication. And, during those 10-12 minutes we tend to interrupt ourselves at least twice to check email, phones, etc. If we were already headed that way, technology has added jet fuel to the journey. This barrage can derail the best laid plans and even keep us from making them in the first place.

I’ll be the first to admit that I am a leader who has struggled with creating boundaries myself, another area where we can hold ourselves hostage. After all, who doesn’t love saying yes? Who doesn’t enjoy the look of gratitude, or relief on the face of the person who has asked the favor? Besides, saying yes can at times almost be a matter of pride. With the high bar we set for ourselves and our “I can do it all” attitude, it really makes you think you could do it all.

You Can Learn to Say No

High achievers are driven and want to accomplish things, and because of that, it is easy to get caught up in doing more and more. However, if we aren’t careful, we will miss out on the very things that matter most to us. Saying yes to everything is not the path to true success. In fact, if you aren’t careful, it could become your undoing.

This realization came for me unexpectedly. I was working in my office on a project when I received a call from a good friend that I hadn’t seen in a long time. We both had very full schedules with our work and family responsibilities. “When can you get together?” she asked me. “Just a moment. Let me pull up my calendar,” I responded. I looked at the next week – nothing available. Then the following week – nothing either. The seconds became minutes as I scrolled through my calendar, finding it so jam packed that between my schedule and hers we couldn’t find a time to get together for two months. Two months! After some juggling we finally nailed down a time, and laughed together about how ridiculously busy we both were.

Such a simple story, and a big realization. I had said yes to so many things, that I didn’t have time for something I really wanted to do. What a tragedy it would be to get so caught up in saying yes to everything that comes along, that without knowing it you take away precious time from your most important priorities. Yet this happens so easily that oftentimes we don’t even notice. Can you relate to this?

Let’s face it: there is only so much time in a day. We all have the same 24 hours– it is up to us to be intentional in how we use them. Part of this intentionality is learning how to say no. I have adopted the discipline in my own life to eliminate unnecessary tasks and narrow down my “to do” list to my top priorities. Saying no doesn’t mean you don’t care. Saying no doesn’t mean you are not capable and able to help. It simply means you can’t help right now and still do all the things you have already committed to.

To have the successful life you desire, you must be disciplined to say “no” more than you say “yes.” Prioritize. Figure out what really matters. Then build your life and schedule around those things and those things only.

What do you need to say “no” to?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Janelle Bruland is an entrepreneur, author, speaker, and high-performance coach who inspires others to live impactful and successful lives. She is Founder and CEO of Management Services Northwest, a company she started in her living room in 1995 and has grown into an industry leading company, named one of the Fastest Growing Private Companies by Inc. magazine. The CPO of Microsoft, Mike Simms, describes her as a true pioneer in her field. Janelle is also the Co-Founder of Legacy Leader, a leadership development company that teaches business professionals how to build a legacy, transform their leadership, and love their life. She is the author of The Success Lie: 5 Simple Truths to Overcome Overwhelm and Achieve Peace of Mind.

The opinions and views expressed by guest contributors are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of theglasshammer.com

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Op-Ed: Staking Your Leadership Claim in a Traditionally Male Profession

female leaders

Guest Contributed by Kathleen Kuhn

It’s time to drop the “female” qualifier and see yourself just as a leader.

There’s been a huge push for gender equality in the workplace in recent decades, and no one can argue that, overall, female leaders have greater representation and visibility today than ever before. As of 2018, 40% of all businesses in the U.S. were owned by women, including 1 in 5 firms that earn over $1M in revenue. In the last 20 years, the number of women CEOs at Fortune 500 companies has risen from just two (1999) to a record-high of 33 (2019).

This is certainly positive news, but it’s only one small slice of the larger picture. Things look a bit bleaker when you zoom in on industries that are traditionally male-heavy, such as construction, trucking, and any of the STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) fields.

According to research by Catalyst, just 6.6% of American women work full-time in occupations that have 75% or more male representation – and with so few women in these professions overall, it’s understandable that female leaders might find it challenging to command respect.

Gender as a leadership qualifier: Why do we care if a leader is female?

Much research has been done on the differences between male and female leadership styles, and the results are often complicated. The American Psychological Association says that all things being equal, men and women are equally effective as leaders, with the caveat that “all things rarely are equal.”

Contributing to this inequality are some persistent perceptions and stereotypes that make women less likely to be seen as leaders. A University of Buffalo study found that conventionally masculine traits, like confidence, assertiveness, and dominance, beat out “feminine” traits, such as cooperativeness, nurturing, sensitivity, and concern for others, in terms of who was viewed as a “leader.”

This, perhaps, explains why women leaders in male-heavy industries have felt like they needed to act like men to be successful and get ahead. Unfortunately, doing so only serves to normalize the existing gender gaps and stereotypes.

On the flip side, other women subscribe to Sheryl Sandberg’s now-famous “Lean In” mantra, which encourages women to take charge of their careers and fight gender inequality by boosting their own skills and confidence. This solution is only marginally better than “acting like a man:” As the Harvard Business Review notes, the idea of leaning in puts the onus of change entirely in the hands of women, when in reality, all genders must contribute to the systemic and societal shifts that will ultimately balance the scales.

How to stake your claim as a leader

So what’s the answer, then? We can start by not focusing so intently on a leader’s gender and instead focus on how effective they are at leading their companies.

Yes, it can be intimidating to be the only woman in a room full of men if you allow it to be. It’s not uncommon for women to think about how those men might be judging and underestimating you because of your gender. But the truth is, the gender mix in a meeting, on a team, or in an entire industry is irrelevant if not beneficial. Your gender is irrelevant; what matters is your performance and your contribution to the overall business and its culture.

As a female executive or senior leader working in a traditionally male profession, here are a few things you can do to focus on good leadership without a gender qualifier.

1. Show your people you care about them

Human beings are social creatures. We need support and recognition from our team to thrive. A report by the Society for Human Resource Management cited some of the benefits of a more caring, human-focused workplaces, including better employee performance, improved safety and health, and greater worker satisfaction and commitment. So, ask people how they’re doing. Get to know them as individuals who have personal lives outside of their jobs. While you’re in the workplace together, acknowledge their accomplishments and express your appreciation for their contributions to the company.

2. Listen to criticism (but don’t take it personally)

Being a leader means you’re going to make some difficult and unpopular decisions. It’s not possible to please everyone on your team, and at some point, you’ll be on the receiving end of negative feedback about your leadership style.

It’s important not to take these things personally, but instead, listen to the criticism and work with your team to find a solution. Research from the University of Bath and the University of Oklahoma found that leaders who respond to intense criticism with a collaborative strategy tend to retain follower support and achieve better outcomes than those who respond by avoiding the issue or diverting attention elsewhere.

3. Stop defining yourself as a female leader

There’s nothing wrong with taking pride in your femininity or celebrating your unique perspective and experiences as a woman. But calling attention to gender differences in your leadership style may ultimately perpetuate existing and perceived gaps between men and women in the workplace. Try to avoid focusing on the gender count in the meeting and simply show up as a competent executive.

The bottom line? When women confidently present themselves simply as leaders, rather than female leaders, it’s easier for everyone else to see them that way, too.

About the Author

Kathleen Kuhn is President and CEO of HouseMaster and PatchMaster, two franchise brands in the home services industry with locations across North America. As head of HouseMaster, the original home inspection franchise, Kathleen oversees an organization with more than 320 franchise locations across the U.S. and Canada. And as the CEO of PatchMaster, Kathleen leads a new, fast growing drywall repair specialty concept with 19 franchises signed in 46 territories with 10 franchises opened and operating.

The opinions and views expressed by guest contributors are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of theglasshammer.com

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The Power of Resilience

power of resilience

Guest contributed by Aleksandra Scepanovic

According a report by American Express, “Behind the Numbers: The State of Women-Owned Businesses in 2018,” as of last year there were 12.3 million women-owned businesses in the U.S. alone.

This is an incredible accomplishment, considering there were just over 400,000 back in 1972. Women are increasingly becoming more prominent in the business world. However, there is still plenty of room for improvement.

While it is encouraging to think that these numbers have risen because women are gaining new opportunities to follow their dreams and pursue career paths they love and enjoy, the harsh reality is that this is not always the case. While there are many factors as to why women are apt to start their own business, the decision could also be a result of work-life imbalance, gender discrimination, or the pay gap women often face in corporations. Growing up, women are told that they are equal to their male counterparts, that they can be whoever they want to be; but just past the childhood days exists an undeniable level of pressure that all women face, no matter their journey.

As women, we are used to society’s expectations of what and who we should be, both in our personal lives and in our careers. This pressure may lead to the feeling or need to be successful in ways different than those experienced by men. We are often faced with pressures to look a certain way and act a certain way, and we experience ageism differently than men. Resilience is defined as “the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness” – something women know a little about. Resilience is a quality that is not only important in your personal life, but is also pivotal to being a successful business owner and leader.

Dr. Brené Brown, a research professor at the University of Houston, conducted a study called the Shame Resilience Theory: A Grounded Theory Study on Women and Shame. The main purpose of the study was to determine how and what makes women feel a sense of shame, or what makes them feel unworthy of acceptance. While there is no universal trigger or answer, the study concluded that, “The sociocultural expectations are narrow interpretations of who women are ‘supposed to be,’ based on their identity (e.g., gender, race, class, sexual orientation, age, religious identity) and/or their role (e.g., mother, employee, partner, group member). These sociocultural expectations are often imposed, enforced, or expressed by individuals and groups (e.g., self, family, partners, friends, coworkers, children, membership groups).”

This feeling of “shame,” as Brown describes, does not stop in the workplace, and can even amplify. Women often have to work harder and work smarter than their male counterparts. On average, a woman will earn about 80 cents for every dollar earned by a man – a disappointing statistic that many of us have heard time and time again. Unfortunately, one which doesn’t always change for women entering the entrepreneurial world. In many cases, gender discrimination may not only affect your paycheck, but might also affect the funding you receive to start your business in the first place. A study by Boston Consulting Group found that “Investments in enterprises founded or co-founded by women averaged at around $935,000, less than half of the $2.1 million on average invested within those founded by men.”

Women face many challenges they need to overcome throughout the course of their careers, challenges that can significantly differ from those men encounter. A report by Senator Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire titled “Tackling the Gender Gap: What Women Entrepreneurs Need to Thrive,” indicates that the three greatest struggles female entrepreneurs face are lack of role models and mentors, the gender pay gap, and unequal access to funding and venture capital.

While this may seem disheartening, there can be light at the end of the tunnel. With each year that goes by, more women are showcasing their resilience and becoming successful business owners and leaders, proving the upward trend in female-founded firms is a result of hard work and determination to thrive.

According to the same previously referenced study by Boston Consulting Group, “For every dollar of funding, startups founded by women generate 78 cents, while startups founded by men generated less than half, at only 31 cents.” While proving that companies founded by women are typically more capable of thriving than male-founded firms, the number of female-owned businesses has doubled in 20 years, as has their revenue. Still, while vast improvements have been made over the last century, there is even more room to grow.

Throughout history, women have had to prove their worth and their place in leadership roles, but the power of resilient women is that we are not deterred by unfavorable statistics, or by being categorized as “successful” or “unsuccessful” based on old school ideals. Though the word resilience can be easily defined, the act of resilience cannot. It is a practice that we must work at each day, and continue to strive for to pave the way for some even more resilient women in the future.

Aleksandra Scepanovic is Managing Director of Ideal Properties Group, a leading residential real estate firm specializing in premier Brownstone Brooklyn and Manhattan neighborhoods in New York City.

The opinions and views expressed by guest contributors are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of theglasshammer.com

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OP-ED: Navigating Employment with a Disability

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October is Disabilities Awareness Month

According to the most recent data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate for persons with a disability is 81.3% that means only a 18.7% employment rate. Among persons with disabilities ages 16-64, the unemployment-population ratio is 70.7% (29.3% employment-population ratio)

These numbers prove we have inclusivity problems in areas beyond the media & government websites. By “we” I mean people with disabilities. I am a wheelchair user and part of the disabled minority that has a higher-education degree. I am part of the 32% of working disabled persons who work part time and the 10.6% of working disabled persons who are currently self-employed.

At the time I’m writing this post, I’m simultaneously trying to boost my freelance salary to a full-time equivalent and/or find full-time employment. I wish I could claim to be an “expert” on helping people with disabilities find employment; I’m not. I’m a freelance writer who knows what the climb toward (and fall away) from full-time employment feels like.

I’m always learning on my journey. One thing I know is that if you’re looking for a job, it’s important to know your rights as a disabled person under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA,) the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment Commission (EEOC,) the Department of Justice (DOJ,) the Department of Labor (DOL) and state and local government. All of the aforementioned departments are responsible for upholding the rights provided to you by the ADA.

I’ve also acquired a wealth of tips that have made job searching with a disability less overwhelming. Hopefully, this post will make your climb a little bit easier.

Know Your Employment Rights & What They Mean

After July 26, 1994, the ADA protected persons with disabilities from job discrimination by “all employers, including State and local government employers, with 15 or more employees.”

That sounds simple enough, but as with most laws, you won’t clearly understand your rights until you know the definitions of key terms and know where the loopholes are.

To be covered by the ADA, you must have all of the academic qualifications and work experience required by the employer to do the job. Your disability must be a “substantial” impairment, meaning that it affects a major life activity like seeing, hearing, speaking, walking, breathing, self-care, completing manual tasks, learning, and other functions. You must be able to perform the essential roles of the job with or without reasonable accommodations.

“Reasonable accommodation” can be defined as a modification or change to the job or environment that helps a disabled person perform essential tasks or receive equal benefits to other employees. This includes the application process.

Some examples of modifications include providing readers or interpreters, adjusting work schedules, modifying training or tests and more. Your employer is required to provide you with reasonable accommodations unless they can prove that doing so would cause “undue hardship.” Undue hardship is substantial difficulty or financial distress.

Employment practices that the ADA covers includes:

  • Recruitment
  • Hiring
  • Training
  • Firing
  • Pay
  • Promotion
  • Benefits
  • Leave
  • Lay off

During the hiring process, your employer cannot ask you if you are disabled or about the severity of your disability. They can ask you questions about completing job-related tasks with or without accommodation, including asking you to demonstrate how you would perform a task.

You cannot be required to take a medical exam before being offered a job. After a job offer, an employer can ask that you complete a medical exam if they require one of all employees. You cannot be discriminated against based on any information that comes from the exam. When you begin working, your employer can only ask questions about your disability if they relate to the job. All of your medical information is to be kept confidential.

Your employer is not required to offer a health care package that includes pre-existing conditions. The ADA does not require that a person with a disability be hired over other qualified applicants because they have a disability.

An employer can refuse to hire a candidate if they pose a threat to themselves or others. The threat must be an objective fact based on evidence. The employer cannot refuse to hire you because of a “slightly increased risk” or perceived risk to you or others.

Building Codes & the ADA

All of the employment protection in the world won’t help you if a building’s structure is inherently inaccessible. The ADA has compliance guidelines for contractors so there is an accessibility standard when building businesses. There are a lot of technical points regarding space needed for wheelchairs and it’s very technically worded and impossible to memorize. Unfortunately, there are loopholes and exceptions written in, as with most laws. But, it’s good to understand some basic rules and note if they aren’t followed upon your first visit to the building.

Tips for the Job Search & Beyond

The hard truth is that the ADA is not your biggest advocate, you have to be. It takes us more work to land the interview, and we can’t relax when we’re in the room if we want to get the job. Here are some tips I’ve learned to help you make job searching less stressful than it already is.

Tip 1: Use Your Resources

If you have resources available to help you find a job at the level your qualification/experience allows, use them. Able-bodied people do it all the time.

Networking with a disability can be difficult, especially in person. I find that as a wheelchair user, I’m constantly fighting to be heard. A group of people (OK, honestly even one person) is not likely to kneel down on my level, so I have to look up constantly and be loud often.

It shakes my confidence, especially in professional situations. Disabled people know that the ADA only protects us so much. Do what you need to do to level the playing field as much as possible. Here are some ideas:

  • Vocational services
  • Resume writing services
  • Headhunting services

The statistics above prove that even with the ADA in place, having a disability makes it more difficult to get a job. Don’t be ashamed to reach out wherever you can for help.

Always speak up for yourself. Make sure the jobs you are seeking are not below your intellectual abilities.

Tip 2: Know the Building

If, when and to whom you disclose your disability is entirely your decision. If you choose not to disclose, you still need to be sure the building meets your needs before an in-person meeting.

Have a friend or family member call to ask if the building is accessible. That term is general and means different things for everyone, so future accommodations might be necessary. (See above for some basics.) But any barrier that keeps you from having a successful interview or first day should be addressed as soon as possible.

If you are a wheelchair user and there is a huge staircase in front of the building, for example, you need to know of alternative entrances. Having a friend call is a way to maintain your right of non-disclosure for as long as you can. They don’t have to identify themselves or ask anything beyond basics.

Look at the bathroom before the interview if you can. If the bathroom doesn’t meet your needs or is being used for storage, address the issue carefully. Do not view the facilities with your employer.

If you feel like your rights are being violated, record it. Digital records are more reliable than paper these days as it’s more difficult to misplace them.

If you don’t feel comfortable asking a superior to record agreements or conversations for you, do it yourself. If your rights are being violated, you’ll need to prove it in court, and that’s not easy. The more records you have, the better your case will be. Contact a lawyer or call the EEOC for more information.

Guest Contributed by Sarah Turner

Sarah is an experienced content writer and digital marketer. She is a well-versed online strategist and produces quality content to help others improve their website. Her expertise covers site development, social media promotion, SEO and content creation.

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The 3 Best Ways Busy Professionals Can Reduce Stress and Start Thriving

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women stressed

Guest Contribution

Ask busy professional women about what she most desires, and a lot will wish to reduce stress.

If you feel like you’re living on the proverbial hamster wheel, it’s time to make small changes to your day to reduce stress and save your sanity. Our tips will help you thrive instead of just get by.

1. Multitask in your personal life

Busy professionals are the rock stars of multitasking. But, multitasking for work is very different from multitasking for yourself. In fact, multitasking may be the wrong word to use. According to Entrepreneur, your brain time-shares rather than multitasks since it is only able to focus on a single task at a time. You must learn how to divvy up your time equally and effectively among tasks. How is this accomplished? Create a to-do list categorized into similar tasks so that your brain doesn’t have to totally change gears. Be sure to always keep your list visible so that you don’t feel that rush of accomplishment, only to realize you have more to do. If you start feeling overwhelmed, remember it’s okay to take a step back and get re-focused. In the future, saying “no” is an option too to avoid getting burnt out.

2. Use Your Lunch Hour to Reduce Stress and Refocus

Unfortunately, Americans take only a portion of their lunch break to eat, or they skip lunch altogether. According to the New York Post, one survey found that 50 percent of workers take 30 minutes or fewer on their lunch hour and that 29 percent work through lunch. Some of the best ways to reclaim your lunchtime include leaving the office to have lunch with a friend or exercising outside with a co-worker or friend. To maximize the benefits of getting out of the office, meet a friend outside to eat for 30 minutes and spend the other 30 minutes walking, meditating, or doing yoga. Physical activity gives you the true breaks you need from work to get refreshed and boost your brain function and mood to help you be more productive and have less stress.

3. Prioritize Tasks

Implementing time management practices is another excellent way to reduce stress on a daily basis. For example, create a checklist for work and home. Arming yourself with a checklist helps you focus and reduces the amount of time you waste on email and social media or chatting with co-workers. Be sure to organize your checklist from most to least pressing tasks and consider allotting yourself enough time for each one. By prioritizing, you will not only feel less stressed, but may find that you are better able to concentrate because you’ll know you’re giving your attention to the most important task on your to do list.

If you’re a visual person, put the checklist on your laptop or tablet or on your desk so you can mark off completed tasks, feel a sense of accomplishment, and know where you stand with your day. If you prefer to use technology, create a note or list on your smartphone; or download one of the many checklist apps.

Stress levels also climb when you feel like you have to do everything right now. One tip is to follow the two-minute and 10-minute rule, as described by Kyle Brost. If you have a task that will take fewer than two minutes, do it immediately so that you don’t face the stress of having too many incomplete tasks. However, if you have a task that requires more time, use the 10-minute rule. Commit to working on the task for 10 minutes. When the time is up, permit yourself to stop and move on to something else to keep chipping away at your to-do list.

High levels of stress prevent you from being productive and thriving. Do yourself a favor and multitask for yourself. Then, use your lunch hour to refocus and reduce stress. It’s also helpful to prioritize tasks and manage your time wisely.

Author

Julie Morris is a life and career coach. She thrives on helping others live their best lives. It’s easy for her to relate to clients who feel run over by life because she’s been there. After years in a successful (but unfulfilling) career in finance, Julie busted out of the corner office that had become her prison. Today, she is fulfilled by helping busy professionals like her past self get the clarity they need in order to live inspired lives that fill more than just their bank accounts. When Julie isn’t working with clients, she enjoys writing and is currently working on her first book. She also loves spending time outdoors and getting lost in a good book. Visit her site at juliemorris.org

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Why We Must Bring Mindfulness To Leadership

thought-leadership

By Aimee Hansen

Leadership today is not crying out for people who are destined to be great. It’s crying out for people who are dedicated to being present.

We don’t need bigger beacons to admire at the top, but human beings who can connect and be here now.

According to Gallup, 85% of employees are not engaged or actively disengaged at work. Forbes found that more employees (65%) would rather see their bosses fired than receive a raise. Research reveals a massive chasm between leaders’ self-perception and how their employees see them. One McKinsey study found that 86% of leaders rated themselves as inspiring, but a Gallup survey found 82% of employees see their leaders as uninspiring.

“Around three years ago, we started to see more and more leaders today being overwhelmed, being always on, not being able to keep up,” says Jacqueline Carter, partner and North American Director of Potential Project and co-author of “The Mind of the Leader – How to Lead Yourself, Your People and Your Organization for Extraordinary Results.

“This is equally evidenced by research that shows what we’re calling ‘a real crisis in leadership,” says Carter. In partnership with HBR press, her organization conducted interviews with 250 C-suite executive interviews, assessed 35,000 leaders and reviewed previous studies.

Leadership Begins in the Mind, and With You

“An unmindful leader is someone who is distracted all the time, who has a hard time getting things done, probably not very calm, maybe stressed,” says Carter. Mindfulness develops the ability to say: “Okay, no matter how chaotic it is out there in the external reality, I can maintain a sense of focus and of discipline and of calm in my internal reality.”

But most leaders don’t feel that way.

“The Mind of the Leader” research found that 73% of leaders feel unmindful most of the time and 67% of leaders feel their minds are simply cluttered. Attention itself has been touted as the world’s scarcest resource in the book, “The Attention Economy: Understanding the New Currency of Business.”

“If we don’t have the ability to understand and lead our own mind, we’re certainly not able to be effective for ourselves,” notes Carter, let alone able to understand our people or the “collective minds of the organization” so that we may lead effectively.

Three Steps to Start Your Own Mindfulness Practice

1) Start a 10 minute guided practice with this app: Research shows that after 14 days, 10 minutes a day, you can actually see the impact of feeling a little more focused, more calm, more clear-minded.

2) Take stock of distractions: Carter advises to take stock of what keeps you from being focused (eg phone on in meetings). Minimize the amount of habits that distract you and create scattered feelings, tension or stress to increase your focus.

3) Stop the multi-tasking: According to Carter, multi-tasking is a myth (the brain conclusively shows we can’t give real attention to two things at once, we just flit between). We can reduce our stress levels by not scattering our attention.

When it Comes to Effectiveness, Mindfulness is a No-Brainer

Mindfulness practice cultivates self-awareness, which is a foundation of good leadership. Mindfulness has been associated with benefits such as enhanced focus and better task performance, enhanced work-life balance, more creativity and innovation, better decision making and problem-solving, more ethical decision making, increased job satisfaction, fewer sick days and more retention.

On a personal level, mindfulness can bring better sleep, enhanced attention, decreased stress, reduced cellular aging, increased emotional intelligence, and also benefits for the immune system, brain, heart and blood pressure.

What is also required, according to Carter, “is not letting our egoistic tendencies drive our behaviors” while “bringing more compassion and kindness into our work places, for strategic reasons, not just because it sounds like a nice idea.”

Why Leaders Need to Watch Their Ego

The research found that when we rise in leadership, it’s incredibly difficult not to develop a big ego. Leaders are listened to, surrounding with people who praise them, paid more and maybe have the fancy corner office.

“There’s all these subtle things that tell the brain, basically, you’re important,” says Carter. “And ego naturally grows.” So, rising into leadership has a tendency towards corrupting our behavior to be ego-driven.

For example, Carter points out, “One of the things about having a big ego is that we’re more susceptible to confirmation bias. We want to see things through the lens of the way we want to see things.”

Mindfulness practice is a way of training your mind to break unconscious biases, to affect how you relate and respond – to stay open, fluid and and respond rather than react.

“We know that we are emotional beings as opposed to rational beings. Too many programs that focus on unconscious bias appeal to our rational approach: ‘Okay, I understand diversity is good’. But we also understand that doesn’t change our behaviors,” asserts Carter. “If we all knew the right thing to do and that enabled us to do it, we’d all be exercising, we’d all be eating well.”

“It’s the same thing with unconscious bias,” says Carter. “The motivation needs to be there, which is the awareness piece, but we also need to train ourselves to be able to overcome those biases that are so unconscious they’re much more difficult to tap into.”

Mindfulness Cultivates Presence and Self-Care

“When somebody is more centered and more grounded (not about being arrogant) but has a strong sense of themselves, you feel that, and you respect them more,” says Carter. “It’s easier for people to listen to those people, because they draw people in.”

The more we cultivate presence, according to Carter, the more we can overcome the cultural addiction to action. More presence means less hustle.

“Being more mindful enables you to set more boundaries, and that was true for all the leaders we spoke to, but certainly the female senior leaders…” says Carter. “It’s a combination of being able to be mindful about what you can do and what you can’t do, and be okay with the fact that you may let people down, but you need to be able to take care of yourself.”

Presence helps us discern what is necessary, what we can put our focus on effectively, and what we can accept and release from our control.

“In our research, it was amazing to see how basically the higher you got in an organization, the higher the level of the executives, they all took time to exercise, they slept well, even despite ridiculous travel schedules and ridiculous scopes of jobs,” says Carter. “It was really clear that if you don’t start taking good care of yourself and setting good boundaries and saying no at an earlier level of your leadership journey, you’re gonna burn out.”

“Presence Pays”

Research shows a direct correlation between a leaders’ mindfulness and the well-being and performance of their people.

“Human beings know when people aren’t present with us,” says Carter. It’s un-motivating, inefficient and costly.

“When you look at how distracted people are, at turnover rates, lack of engagement, you can make a pretty strong business case that being present with people, being kind to people, being about others not about ourselves, it’s not just nice to have,” said Carter. “It’s pretty critical to be successful in business today…we look at it as ‘presence pays’.”

“What we’ve found in our experience of training people to be more present is it actually saves time because if I know that I’m heard, I’ll stop talking. My message got across,” says Carter. When we don’t feel heard, we’ll keep trying to be – we’ll keep on talking.

Presence can be as simple as sticking around for a real answer to “how are you?”. On the contrary, “if you go to a meeting, and half the people are on their devices, you should just get up and leave. Seriously,” says Carter. “You’re wasting your time because of lack of presence.”

Presence, paired with compassion, creates a sense of meaningfulness and connection, and that matters when in inspiring others and earning their trust. Research has shown that a lack of trust ultimately erodes performance and the bottom line.

“We are wired to want to fit in and want to feel valued. And when feel heard, when we feel like we matter, and when we then are able to connect with other human beings, it enables collaboration, it enables the right conversations to happen, including tough conversations,” says Carter. “If I give you feedback and I’m distracted, that’s gonna be horrible for you. But if I give you feedback because I really care about you and I really want you to get this didn’t work out well, you can completely receive that. It’s the power of presence to be able to have both tough conversations as well as nice, engaging moments of meeting effectiveness.”

The Lone Leadership Ideal Is Dead

“What has been an iconic idea for a long time of a single, solitary leader – the great leader theory – is really dead.” says Carter. “The pace of change that all of us are experiencing regardless of what industry we’re in – the disruption, the distraction, the pressure – is just too complex and too much for any one individual to have all the answers.”

Nobody, and especially Millennials, want “some great person (often some ‘great man’) on a pedestal they don’t connect with,” said Carter.

Meaning, purpose and connection is what most of us want.

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4 ways to know it’s time to ask for more from your job

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Woman-on-a-ladder-searching

Guest Contributed by Deepa Ramaraj

According to a recent US census, only 19% of women executives reach the highest ranks of business.

The same census showed that the fastest growing demographic of business owners in the USA today are women-owned businesses.

Before you leave your corporate job, ask yourself questions about your aptitudes, aspirations and what really drives you to succeed? The below questions may help you to be better equipped to know if now is the time to ask for more from your job and may give you more clarity about what direction you could consider taking.

1. What will my life be like in 5 years if I keep this job?

If you were promoted, what is the level of responsibility and what are the daily tasks of this new position? Is this something that you are willing to take on? Is the level of salary increase over the next 5 years in this position something that you are excited about receiving or is it lacklustre? According to 2018 forecasts, most executive positions can only expect a 3% salary increase, barely keeping up with cost of living. Is working in this job creating difficulties in any other area of your life? Personally? Physically? Relationships? Health? Mental Health? Note down what impressions that you have about keeping this job in all of these factors.

2. What will my life be like in 5 years if I don’t keep this job?

What if you could decide for yourself what your life will be like if you don’t keep this current job? What are the other opportunities for employment? What marketplace demand is there for your skills and what salaries are being offered to seasoned entrants? What is your value proposition as a candidate, how will you shine? Could you choose to take time off right now or choose a different path?

3. What do I love about this job?

Challenge yourself to write 25 things that you actually love about the job that you are in. The 80/20 rule could be applied to your work. If 80% of your job is taken up with things that you enjoy and feel masterful about and only 20% of your job is not, then you are probably in a sustainable career for you. If it is the opposite, it may be time to consider a change. What else is possible for you to love about this job that isn’t obvious at the moment? Sometimes we get bogged down and don’t actually ask for the job to be enjoyable.

4. Is now the time to change?

Jumping back to fantasizing about winning a lottery or having an astonishing inheritance come in so you can retire from working altogether, which of course would be wonderful, realistically is now the time to actually ask for more from your job? What are you aware of politically from the company structure? Could you be promoted? Could you ask for more responsibility and get a pay raise or more benefits that would add to your life?

What if it’s possible to ignite a fire under your current job and develop it into something more profitable, something that you are excited to arrive at every morning? Asking and answering the above questions will start to point at possible changes that you can make to your job and your life, to increase the level of satisfaction and joy. Yes, it is possible to have both satisfaction and joy at work and settling for anything less is just that.

About the author

Deepa Ramaraj is a Computer Science Engineer turned Health and Wealth Educator, as well as a Right Riches for You facilitator, a specialty program from Access Consciousness. Deepa facilitates workshops for corporate companies to boost sales, to dissolve interpersonal or inter-departmental challenges and to transform the way business is done. These workshops are totally unconventional in approach. She also conducts workshops for individuals about how to receive more money, reduce stress, have better relationships, improve health and upskill as a parent.

Disclaimer: The opinions and advice of guest contributors are not necessarily those of theglasshammer.com

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