Too Feminine to Lead?
Posted on Tue, Sep 01, 2009 @ 11:48 AM
A guest post by Donna Scott
Even after anti-discrimination laws and the success of women’s rights activists, women still face gender-based hurdles in the workplace. There is a reason the term “glass ceiling” has been used to describe the predicament of women everywhere; the barrier is subtle, nearly invisible, and worthy women usually ascend far up in positions of power until they reach that stopping point. One way women have dealt with the barriers on female leadership power is to emulate stereotypical masculine leadership qualities: being gruff, strict, and uncompromising. Yet, adopting this persona not only obscures women’s true leadership style, but also fuels the opinion that women must essentially become men to lead.
Niki Leondakis, who joined San Francisco-based Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants as director of restaurant operations in 1993, felt she had to prove herself in the male-dominated department, according to an article in Forbes. She was nicknamed “The Terminator” for her tough and unwavering leadership style, firing those who didn’t meet her standards. But Leondakis found her “macho guy” façade draining and false, and she eventually grew comfortable letting her real self come through in leading. She began dropping the “Terminator” act in favor of compromising with employees and listening to their thoughts first before making her leadership decisions. Yet, when she did this, she was quickly accused of showing weakness as a leader.
Hillary Clinton experienced the same problem while running in the 2008 presidential primaries. She was accused of being too cold and emotionless, but when she shed a few tears on camera, critics attacked her “feminine weakness.” The demand for women leaders to be both masculine and feminine is an unfair one, as men in power are rarely demanded to show femininity in their leadership styles.
"The notion that a contemporary woman must look mannish in order to be taken seriously as a seeker of power is frankly dismaying," wrote Anna Wintour, editor of Vogue, in the magazine’s letter from the editor after Clinton declined to be photographed out of the fear of seeming too feminine.
Some women have managed to use their femininity to their advantage to gain respect. First Lady Michelle Obama exploded onto the scene as a sharp-dressed woman with intelligence and ambition to boot. She had almost as much media coverage as her husband as she visited soup kitchens and hospitals and supported military families. Yet, Michelle Obama is the First Lady and not the president. Whether a woman who unapologetically accepts and celebrates her femininity like Michelle could run for a high leadership role such as the American presidency and win remains to be seen.
This post was contributed by Donna Scott, who writes about the Online College Degree Programs. She welcomes your feedback at DonnaScott9929 at yahoo.com