Women's Leadership Blog

Get Networking working for You

A guest post by Pat Obuchowski:

~Max Messmer

A client of mine was laid off after 15 years with the same company. One of her first realizations was that she wished she had networked more during that time to stay in contact with people she met in her industry and to make new contacts. This would have proved invaluable to her when she started to look for new work.

What is it about networking that's not working for you? I'm talking about the old fashioned face to face contact, not social networking, which is a whole other topic.

We continue to hear that networking is the number one way to find the job we're looking for, earn the business we want, find the resources we need, and to make the connections we need as human beings. Well, why aren't we all stars at networking?
I always thought networking had the meaning of working hard to grab as many people as you can in your net. Kind of like fishing for tuna. The more the better. I thought it was an odd word to use.

 

Dictionary.com defines networking as: a supportive system of sharing information and services among individuals and groups having a common interest.
Isn't that a much more effortless way of looking at it? Oh, it's supportive. That means that I can also help other people. And by the way, that is the best approach to take. Magic words asking someone "How can I help you?"
Oh, it's a system. There is an order, a schema. Now, that I can work with. I need a plan to work in a system. I can do that.
Oh, it's sharing information and services. It's not about going in and being desperate to make the one right connection (although it is about making connections). I have lots of information and great services to share. And, oh, it's about sharing. I just have to find that common point and we're off!
Oh, we have a common interest. Of course. That is what would draw a group of people to any networking event. All I have to do is find the common interest.
They are there for the same reason as I am. To find a supportive system of sharing information and services among individual and groups having a common interest. Knowing we're there for the same reason sure does make it a lot easier.

Now having a different perspective on networking, here are a few things that I have found to work for networking at events.

1. Just do it. I was really fearful of networking when I started my business eight years ago, but now I consider myself a pretty good networker. I still feel the GULP and I still do it anyway. I remind myself that most of these people are here for the same reason I am.
2. Be specific. Have your 15-30 second elevator speech ready. Use a networking event as a playground for testing out your elevator speech. Use it and see how it lands. Try it several times and if necessary revise it.
3. Future contact. I remember that in all likelihood if this isn't an industry event or a regular networking event, I will never see most of these people again...unless I want to. This idea frees me up to do things such as test my elevator speech, or a new marketing phrase I want to set up, or to do a survey of something.
4. Ask the other person, "How can I help you?" These are the magic words and I have found that most often, people don't know what to ask, but they do love being asked. You just must be prepared to help them if they do ask you for something specific.
5. Keep your promises. If you say you're going to do something, e.g., make a connection, give a referral, send an article, be sure you do it. There is nothing worse than breaking a promise to start off a relationship.

 

Expect a call from me soon. I'm networking.

 

About Pat Obuchowski:

Pat Obuchowski is CEO (Chief Empowerment Officer) of inVisionaria, a Leadership and Team coaching organization. She currently serves as a Global Board Director for the International Coach Federation, the largest professional coaching association in the World.

Web: www.inVisionaria.com

Linked In: http://www.linkedin.com/in/patobuchowski

*Image: Spectrum by Lumax Art 

 

Paths to Power: Advancing Women in Government

This new study examines the growing impact, influence and importance of women in senior, decision-making roles in the public sector.

Paths to Power: Advancing Women in Government, published by Forbes Insights and Deloitte, looks at the gains women have been making in gaining power, and how their voices are influencing economies and societies worldwide.

 

Summary:
When it comes to women's advancement, few achievements can compare with the rising role of women in government. The move to achieving full gender parity may be slow and uneven, but women are increasingly being elected and appointed to positions of power. This governmental evolution has the potential to pave the way for women to make further gains in the public and private sectors, helping to bring their voice and talent to the issues that shape national economies and societies.

Paths to Power, developed by Deloitte and Forbes Insights, explores the growing impact-and importance-of women in senior, decision-making roles in the public sector. It looks at women as a critical resource for economic growth, as well as the critical need to harness the wealth of global female talent in both the public and private sectors. In addition, Paths to Power shows how women's progress in the public sector is setting the stage for advancement in the private sector.

You can download the study at: http://www.forbes.com/forbesinsights/pathstopower/index.html

Were You Born to Be in Charge? 4 Traits of Women Leaders

Guest post by Susan Liddy:

Are you a woman who leads? Whether it's managing a team at work, coaching the cheerleading squad, or running your own business... strong leaders have one thing in common. They know how to motivate other people to action!

When you think of women who lead, who comes to mind? Maybe Oprah Winfrey, Indira Ghandi, Margaret Thatcher... fearless females who stand out as championing a cause or motivating others for lasting change. What about people from your everyday life? We all know at least one woman who stands out as being an exceptional leader among her peers.

How about you... have you always wanted to lead a group? Maybe you already act as a leader in your own life and just need some reassurance that you're in the right role.

Here are some common traits of women who know how to take charge and empower others for success!

1. Women leaders are goal-oriented. The sole point of organizing a group of people is for a common purpose- a goal! To be a woman who knows how to move people to action means that you must be purpose-driven. Natural born leaders have both a long- and short-term vision for the future. What does the group intend to do? What steps need to be taken to get there? Put a strong leader in charge and you will quickly see change take place - starting with a goal.

2. Women leaders know how to communicate effectively. Great bosses, influential presidents, and even strong scout leaders know how to effectively motivate people through words and gestures. Not only are they good at saying what they mean, but strong leaders excel at speaking in front of a group. They know how to use both verbal and nonverbal skills to convey powerful, rousing emotions. And in the arena of interpersonal communication... strong leaders remain fair, impartial, positive and empowering when interacting with others.

3. Women leaders display high emotional intelligence. We spoke a bit about effective communication; strong leaders become this way because they have learned to rise above petty thoughts and steer clear of self defeating inner dialogue (coaches call this self talk). Maintaining high emotional intelligence means these women are more apt to remain cool and in control in a crisis; not let negative influences bring them down and not find themselves spinning in those self defeating cycles that so many of us find ourselves in. Instead, they empower their thoughts to achieve more in less time, to guide others to do the same and to get more accomplished using the people and resources available!

4. Women leaders know how to delegate. Weak leaders tend to micro-manage; that's when you assign a task to someone else but then, instead of trusting them to get the job done, focus all of your energy nitpicking and criticizing. A good leader puts her trusted team members to work so she can free up her time to make long-range plans for the future. The strong female in charge knows how important it is to have key people in her corner who are well suited to the jobs that she needs them to complete. This keeps her at the helm of the plan, focused on long range goals and ensuring that the group can continue to maximize productivity, stay motivated for the future and attain everything they set out to!

Finally, all great leaders understand how important life balance and self care is to achieving their goals, staying healthy and leading others effectively. Above all else, engaging in a healthy lifestyle and drawing a line between your work and personal life, is critical to becoming, and being, the best leader possible.

About the Author:

Life Coach Susan Liddy, MA, PCC, CPCC is the founder and CEO of AspireLifeCoaching.org, a life coaching company on a mission to empower women globally. Susan is the author of the "Secrets to Ultimate Living; What you wish you knew when you were 20!" and an active contributor to many blogs, including her own blog, SecretsToUltimateLiving.com.

Click here to get FREE access to Susan's Passages to Empowerment video series.

2010 Become a Fearless Entrepreneur Scholarships Awarded

Do you wonder what it REALLY takes to start your own business?

Are you tired of thinking about your business idea and never doing anything about it?

Would you like to be part of a supportive and inspiring group of smart women?

15 Women are embarking upon a 6 month program to become Fearless! With Wells Fargo as our program sponsor, we congratulate 3 Fearless Ladies as Scholarship Awardees!

Meet: Vartika Agarwal

Vartika is an engineer at Yahoo and student at Stanford. Nominated because she is the source of inspiration to her family/friends/co-workers, Vartika is working on a healthy fast food chain.

Meet: Melissa Bicheler

Melissa's idea and passion for advocating for survivors of rape is inspiring. Her can-do, creative attitude provides room for her to succeed. The kickoff projects for Educating Innovators include "Swimming Upstream", a documentary on secondary vicitimization of survivors of sexual assault from medical examination, an online continuing education class for medical professionals teaching them how to treat patients who were just sexually assaulted. and an e-Guide for college students taking them through the maze of aftermath treatment and service options, and "Not Starving Artists", a book based on interviews with artists of all kinds who make at least a living wage with their art.

Meet: Kim Daly

She left her job with Corporate American 2 years ago to start her own business. Urbane Concierge, a boutique personal assistant service that provides busy professionals, individuals caring for elderly family members, and homemakers alike, the opportunity to entrust a licensed and insured personal assistant to handle the everyday tasks that stand in the way of a balanced life.

Come read more Vartika, Melissa, and Kim on our website. 

Special Thanks to our program coach, Fearlessness, Inc. and program sponsor, Wells Fargo.

The Become a Fearless Entrepreneur Program started up January 2010.  For more information contact: programs@futurewomenleaders.net

 

Jessica Wan, Featured Leader

Future Women Leaders recently had the opportunity to chat with Jessica Wan, former FWL officer and currently a student at Berkeley's Haas School of Business.  Jessica is this month's featured leader!

:: Tell me a bit about your background.
I'm originally from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, and also grew up in Columbus, Ohio. I headed out west to attend Stanford University for my undergraduate studies, where I double-majored in Product Design (a multidisciplinary blend of mechanical engineering and art) and Music with a concentration in Vocal Performance. I've always enjoyed having diverse interests and hobbies in my life, and this really showed in college when I would be in the machine shop by day working on a lathe and singing in an opera at night.

:: Why did you decide to get an MBA?
I had been working for the San Francisco Opera as a marketing manager for three years, and I really enjoyed my job, loved the people I worked with, and admired the company. However, looking at my goals for the next 5-10 years and wanting to give more to my work required a basic level of business knowledge that I didn't yet have. I felt that of all types of companies, nonprofit organizations absolutely had the most to gain from their employees pursuing MBAs. On a personal level, I realized that I needed to learn more about the business world in general and that I wanted to make connections with a diverse set of people outside of my field.

:: What are the biggest work-related challenges you have faced? How did you overcome them?
Some of the biggest challenges I have faced have been in situations where I didn't have formal power or authority. Being a young professional in mature organization presents both a challenge and opportunity to implement change where it's needed. But getting buy-in from colleagues can be difficult as it may be perceived that the old way was flawed. The way I overcame these types of challenges was through building rapport and trust with colleagues and providing concrete information and data about the change. Also, don't underestimate the amount of time it may take for people to sway in your direction.

:: Tell me about the mentors you have had in your life.
I typically haven't set up formal mentorships with people I see as mentors; my mentors tend to be people whom I very much admire who have gone through the experience that I am going through at the time. For example, I see my voice teacher as an incredible mentor -- she plays multiple roles of teacher, coach, performer, businesswoman, mother, wife, and artist. And through it all, she remains authentic, passionate, and committed. Many of my mentors play many roles in their life, and it is their desire to be so multifaceted that draws me to them.

:: Anything you wish you had known when you were in earlier stages of your career?
Speak up! Negotiate! Don't be seen as over-willing or desperate. These are things I wish someone had told me in the beginning of my career. I think that when you're just starting out in the working world, you are so eager and excited to take on projects and challenges that you end up saying "yes" before you even hear the question. However, there is a fine line between enthusiasm and being taken advantage of. It's great to be excited about work, but just make sure you're truly wanting the opportunities you're seeking -- not just because you're expected to want them.

:: What are leadership qualities you value most in others?
Honesty, empathy, enthusiasm, authenticity, creativity, strong will, and a great listening ear.

:: What is your greatest achievement?
My greatest achievement was to succeed at work, apply for business school, and maintain a peaceful home all while going through the most difficult personal period of my life. I had lost my mom - my best friend - and was going through all the cycles of grief and despair, yet I knew I had to somehow move forward. I continued working, devoted myself to my family, and took on the huge job of applying to grad school. It was the most intense year of my life, but I feel I came out of it a more mature and composed person. After that challenge, I felt I could take on anything.

:: Who inspires you?
Andy Goldsworthy, Placido Domingo, Mohammad Yunus, Jacqueline Novogratz, Barack Obama. My parents, my husband, my in-laws.

:: Do you have a mission statement or a tenet that you try to live by?
I really, really like Eleanor Roosevelt's tenet of doing something every day that scares you. I try to live up to this and hope to improve at it. I suppose my own mission statement would be something like "give your all, infuse creativity into your work and play, and let go of doubts and worries." Not as elegant as Eleanor's one-liner, but it works for me!

:: Do you have work/life balance?
At the present moment, I am blessed with incredible work/life balance as an MBA student. I know that will probably change once I move back into the working world, but I yearn to find a compromise such that the line between work and life isn't so defined. I desire a job that fulfills my life and a home life that supports and may even complement my work. My hope is that my life as a whole doesn't need to chunk into specific categories, but can operate as one well-oiled machine.

Trends in Online Education

A guest post by Shannon Wills:

There’s no doubt that the Internet has given us a host of benefits and made the world a much smaller place than it is. We are now connected to every nook and corner of the earth, and information is no longer exclusive to a privileged few. One area where the World Wide Web has made significant contributions is online education – what started out as distance education where students were sent their study material through post and took their exams remotely has now bloomed into a full-fledged business that allows people to earn degrees from the comfort of their home.

The trends in online education have been changing since the time degrees were offered entirely online – earlier, there was a stigma attached to these degrees with employers and society refusing to accept them as equal to regular degrees that were earned in traditional institutions. The existence and rampant success of diploma mills that churned out fake degrees for money also did not help any, with people hesitant to accept even genuine online degrees as the real deal. And this meant that it was only those who had no other option left who turned to online schools to pursue an education.

Today however, there is a vast difference in how people perceive online education, especially since prestigious institutions like MIT have also jumped on this bandwagon and started offering its lessons online through its OpenCourseWare project. So we see the difference in the kind of students who enroll for online courses:
    •    While it earlier attracted mostly stay-at-home moms who had no time to attend regular college and for older men and women who felt out of place on campus, online education today is the choice of busy career men and women who look to these degrees to help further their profession and climb up the career ladder.
    •    Also, because of the recent recession, online education has become the savior of those who need to learn new skills to find better jobs, those who do not have enough money to afford a regular college education, those who wish to hold on to their jobs and also earn a degree so that they can further their careers, and for those who have been laid off and who seek to use their time constructively and in a cost-effective way.
    •    Veterans and others from the armed forces are turning to online education to help them gain skills to re-enter the mainstream workforce and fit better when they leave the army because of injuries or other reasons. They are able to learn from any place in the world, and when they leave the armed forces, they have a degree that will help them go places in the work world and also help support their families.

There’s no doubt that online education will continue to evolve and grow, and one day, it will become the norm rather than the anomaly.

This guest post is contributed by Shannon Wills, she writes on the topic of Online Engineering Degree . She welcomes your comments at her email id: shannonwills23@gmail.com.

10 Resolutions Every Woman Should Make

Here are a couple of great resolution suggestions from Jo Miller of Women's Leadership Coaching, and lead facilitator of FWL's 2010 Leadership Development Program. Registration for the program ends on February 16.

1. Become more influential

Build your ability to influence, persuade, and motivate others, regardless of whether you have a management job title.  Influencing Without Authority>>

2. Seek management’s buy-in for a new idea
Take a great technical idea, and sell it to your senior management by partnering with others to build credibility. Selling your technical idea to management >>

3. Don’t let others steal your ideas
Pitch persuasive proposals, and pitch yourself too, to get credit for your work. Getting Credit for Your Ideas >>

4. Learn to delegate effectively
Manage the work performance of others, without hovering about like a micro-manager. How Do I Delegate without Micromanaging >>

5. Build an influential network
You don’t need to be a “shmoozer” to be a good networker, when you include these five key types of people. Five Key People You Need in Your Network >>

To see 5 more resolutions, visit 10 Resolutions Every Women Should Make.  To learn more about the LDP and to register for the final information session on February 4, visit the FWL Leadership Development Program homepage.

The 2010 Women in Leadership Conference

The 2010 Haas School of Business Women in Leadership Conference is coming up! Thought this may be just the kind of opportunity many of you have been eagerly awaiting. 

Featured Woman Leader of the Month - Carla Cooper, CFA

Carla Cooper is a seasoned finance professional who was kind enough to take time out of her busy schedule to share her insight with Future Women Leaders.

Question #1: Tell me a bit about your background.

I have an undergraduate degree from Princeton. I joined Prudential Securities after college and spent three years there. Because I had a liberal arts major, and no finance background, my first four months at Prudential were really a tough challenge - a brutal four month financial education. Many of my peers had finance backgrounds and seemed to be so far ahead, but I knew that I would be able to overcome those challenges. In college, I wrote a 140 page thesis on a complex political topic - I knew I could do anything.

Early on, I really wanted to prove myself - prove that I could handle the challenges of the job. As a result, I ended up pursuing the CFA because I felt it would provide me with the skills I would need to do well at Prudential. And this is key - a lot of people advised me not to pursue the CFA, noting that my time would be better spent doing something else. Ultimately I made my decision based on what I believed would be the right step for me. One lesson I took away from my experience at Prudential is that it is important to look at what the organization values and take steps that will lead you to succeed in that environment.

Question #2: Why did you decide to get an MBA?

I wanted a flexible degree that would provide me with options in business. I decided to attend Kellogg because I felt it was a well-rounded school, which was an important aspect for me since I was considering getting out of finance. I spent my first summer in business school working in marketing - in some ways it was a horrible experience, but in other ways it was fantastic. I'd like to note here that difficult experiences really sharpen your thought process - there is usually something to be learned. I wouldn't seek out difficult experiences, but I wouldn't avoid them either. After that summer, and after spending time hearing about what friends in finance were doing, I decided that I wanted to pursue a career in finance.

Something to consider when evaluating a job prospect - you can accept a job for the person you will be working for, if not for the job itself. After business school, I went to work for the co-director of Equity Research at Robert W. Baird & Co. and I became his right-hand woman. At Baird, I worked my way up from an Associate position to a Senior Analyst role. I spent about 10 years in sell-side research with Baird before I decided to transition to Baird Investment Management (where I have been for 4 years).

Question #3: What are the biggest work-related challenges you have faced? How did you overcome them?

• My Prudential experience (described in Question 1) - when I chose to pursue the CFA
• I had a challenging boss early in my career, and in terms of lessons I took away from that experience: have a thick skin - don't take things personally. If someone is being difficult, understand that there is another story underlying their behavior - might not be you
• Also - I had two kids while working as a Senior sell-side Research Analyst - no easy feat (I am blessed to have a supportive spouse). Something to consider - don't let others dictate to you what makes a good mom; it is important for your kids to see you as a happy person - so do what makes you happy

Question #4: Tell me about the mentors you have had in your life (male/female).

• My first boss at Baird - I really learned how to think things through and improved my interpersonal skills
• I had a great mentor at Prudential - someone who rescued me from the challenging boss I described earlier. She was smart, had a great presence - was strong and definitive and a great role model partly because she was a woman

Question #5: Anything you wish you had known when you were in earlier stages of your career?
Rules of the corporate or business world are sometimes unspoken - i.e. not as crystal clear as "these are the things you need to do to get an A." Sometimes you need to take risks or seek out guidance
Always weigh the costs and benefits of your actions. Don't be risk averse, but people can sometimes forget that the downside is higher than the incremental upside that they are focused on
Just have to figure things out as you go.

Question #6: What are leadership qualities you value most in others?

• Directness
• Good blocking and tackling
• Someone who is consistent versus someone who is on once a year
• Engage with the people/work/process/everything and has some commitment to periodically stepping back and reviewing the strategy/goal

Question #7: What is your greatest achievement?

• I was really proud that I was a top ranked Senior Research Analyst at a firm I really respect.
• I was proud to have stayed on track professionally at the same time as I was raising a family
• You have to love what you do because there will come a day when being with your kids will become really attractive

Question #8: Who inspires you?
My husband inspires me because he is so level headed and is always thinking about how to solve problems. I am also frequently inspired by what I read and by people I meet.

Question #9: Do you have a mission statement or a tenet that you try to live by?

• You aren't learning anything if you are talking; make sure to listen!
• What goes around comes around
• Golden rule - treat others as you would like to be treated

Question #10: Do you have work/life balance?

• I have work/life balance - but I am always on the go; I don't get to sleep much, but that is ok with me
• I have three regular volunteer commitments - which I enjoy 
• Exercise is definitely my stress release

It’s Not A Male Conspiracy

A guest post by Lynn Harris:

Every month or so new research appears about women in senior leadership – either there aren’t enough of them, or they’re not being treated on a par with men when they do make it to the top.
Two of the most recent examples are the World Economic Forum’s 2009 Gender Gap Report, and a new survey from The Corporate Library on the relative earnings of female CEOs.

The Gender Gap report gives a league table of how well countries use their resource of female talent (predictably, not very well for most countries). The Corporate Library survey reveals that female CEOs (those rare creatures) earn just 58 percent of what males earn; they also get lower bonuses.

One might surmise  (as some women do when they read these kind of statistics), that there’s some kind of male conspiracy to keep women out of boardrooms and corner offices.
I don’t believe that’s so.

Men don’t get up in the morning and think, “How can I keep women down today?” At least not any men I know. Most of them just aren’t very interested in the issue. They’re focused on climbing the corporate ladder, and don’t really think gender gaps at the top are that important.

So, if it’s not a male conspiracy, why ARE there relatively few women in the upper echelons?
It’s tempting to look for single causes: women have lower self-esteem, or women are not genetically programmed to lead, or men are more committed and ambitious for power – the list goes on and on.

In fact, media articles that quote new research almost always focus on a single cause for the lack of women at the top.  After all, if there were a single reason why more women don’t influence government policy, run academic institutions or lead corporations, it would be relatively easy to assign blame and fix the problem.

Unfortunately, for complex issues such as this one, there is never a single point of causality.

Simplistic analyses that say women need to be more assertive, more confident or more ambitious, are well intentioned, but misleading. They result in confusing advice for women who want to lead.
Women are told, for example, that they need to be more assertive, but not so assertive that they are disliked; they need to be collaborative, but not so friendly that they lack credibility; they need to be more competent than their male colleagues, but in a way that does not threaten them; and they need to be role models for other women, but need to behave more like men to succeed. Women obviously also need a good sense of humor!

Instead of looking for a single cause, we need to look at the different forces that interact to create leadership and organizational norms that favor men and disadvantage women. I call these forces the “unwritten rules.”

These rules aren’t explicitly acknowledged in organizations, but we all know they exist. They create a culture or environment in which it is more difficult for women to get to the top, and even to stay there once they have succeeded.

The unwritten rules are not part of some dastardly male conspiracy to keep women down. Rather, they are leadership norms that have evolved and become more extreme over time. Unfortunately, they are so firmly entrenched in organizations that they show little signs of changing.

What can be done to change this unbalanced status quo?

There seems to be a growing movement that recognizes women as a vastly underutilized leadership resource that could lead us back to economic stability, and clean up some of the dubious business practices that have led to the current worldwide economic recession.

Saadia Zahidi, co-author of the 2009 Global Gender Gap Report, says “Women and girls make up one half of the human resources available to the world and it will be imperative that they are educated, empowered and integrated for rapid economic recovery.”

The Corporate Library survey of Female CEO Pay demonstrates the need for parity at the top, even after women have made it to the corner office.

This is unlikely to happen, however, unless we move away from conspiracy theories and singular causes. Instead, we need to confront the reality of the unwritten rules, and recognize how they produce leadership behavior that maintains a status quo that significantly disadvantages women who want to lead. Women then have a clear choice. Learn the skills to succeed within the rules; or expose the rules and try to change the game.

 

About Lynn Harris:

Lynn Harris brings over 20 years of managerial, leadership and consulting experience in large organizations. She runs her own executive development practice based in Montreal, Canada where she specializes in executive coaching, team development and meeting facilitation. She also works internationally with colleagues from Europe delivering organizational change projects and leadership development workshops.

Author: Unwritten Rules What Women Need To Know About Leading In Today's Organizations
www.unwrittenrulesthebook.com