by Lisa Featherngill, Head of Legacy and Wealth Planning, Abbot Downing

Empowerment can come in many forms.

According to Webster’s, the definition of empowerment is “granting of power, right or authority to perform various acts and duties or the state of having the power, right or authority to do something.”

So, empowerment can come from inside or it can be given to someone. In my experience, being empowered as a young girl helped me become stronger and more confident as a woman. I want to share my story with you to hopefully inspire you to empower others.

I was fortunate that my hard working, successful single mother never discouraged me from ‘traditional’ male subjects. She never graduated from high school and yet she was working at the White House and traveling with the Press Corps and Presidents Johnson and Nixon. She was a role model for being strong and confident and always told me that I could do whatever I want in life.

Growing up I was surrounded by women like Helen Thomas, the iconic correspondent from Associated Press, Gloria Steinem who had just started Ms. Magazine and was a leader in the women’s liberation movement. These women were powerful, visible and impactful. They were trail blazers who did not hesitate to follow their passion for change despite considerable obstacles. I practiced what I observed. As a teenager and young adult, I was told I was “rebel without a pause.” I was always eager to channel my energy into exploring new opportunities.

In college, I thought that I wanted to be a photo-journalist. Then my camera was stolen on a trip to Key West before the fall semester started, so I decided to try accounting. To my surprise, I loved it. I took the CPA exam as soon as I finished finals and a week later went to work at Arthur Andersen. Although 50% of the new hires were women, there weren’t many women in the senior ranks. It was a tough environment and even tougher as a woman. It was at Arthur Andersen that I found my first supporter in my professional career, a man named David, who was a partner. He told me that he expected brilliance from me. Through hard work, constructive feedback and opportunities I was promoted and quickly learned that with more visibility, there were new and higher barriers to overcome. David took a chance sponsoring me, a term that was not used that time. He provided me space to grow, to build my confidence and recognize my contributions to the firm. Although he was incredibly tough, I knew he had my back.

Through my experience with David and Arthur Andersen, I knew I had added responsibility to pay it forward to create opportunities and a more inclusive environment for women in the workplace. One small example occurred during a cold winter one year, back when women didn’t wear pants to work. I challenged the office Managing Partner and said “I’m going to wear pants to work tomorrow” and he replied, “fine, I’m going to wear a skirt.” That day my simple act of defiance helped drive change that was another stepping stone to improving the environment for women in our office.

I love to find great talent and the planning field has an unusually high percentage of women. I have been fortunate to help other women find opportunities that enable them to grow professionally and personally. Support can be as simple as encouragement, inviting someone to a conversation, or creating room from them to innovate. One of the members of my team was dedicated to client service, but I saw so much potential in her to lead others and share her voice more prominently. I coached her for a few years and provided her more exposure when I expanded her role from a regional to national level. She has also coached me to understand different perspectives. I have seen her flourish through the relationships she has built with others and helped her grow in confidence so she can someday step into my shoes.

Being available to talk to women in the finance field has been very rewarding. Listening to their experiences and needs has allowed me to adapt my management style. I have made sure that my teams have flexible work schedules and resources available to them so they can do their best work while still managing their personal lives. Ironically, working from home during the COVID-19 virus has shown other leaders that we can be effective with flexible work schedules and working from home.

We have a unique opportunity and responsibility to empower other women. According to a recent presentation at the Abbot Downing Women’s Summit, women have not been able to break a glass ceiling to get past 20% of women in leadership positions. Currently, 60% of undergraduate and graduate degrees are awarded to women. So, there are women entering the workforce. However, the conundrum to me, is that they still aren’t getting into the leadership positions at the same rate as men. It is amazing to me that 48 years after the first edition of Ms. Magazine and seven years after the book “Lean In” was published, women aren’t in more leadership roles. To quote Ruth Bader Ginsburg, “Women belong in all places where decisions are being made. It shouldn’t be that women are the exception.”

If this is going to change, both the women in the 20% and men in leadership roles need to empower the 80% of women beneath the glass ceiling. Women and men need to recognize and support the women who show the desire and talent for leadership. I am fortunate to currently report to a man who provides this support for me and other women in the company.

Empowerment can happen at work or it can happen at home. As Gloria Steinem said, “The best way for us to cultivate fearlessness in our daughters and other young women is by example. If they see their mothers and other women in their lives going forward, despite fear, they’ll know it’s possible.”

I encourage us all to invest time into the change needed. We are all in a position of influence.