Letting Others Encourage Us

I'm reading a book about women who became college presidents and they all cite people who encouraged them along the way.  The author made an interesting observation:  "I would argue that many women are given acknowledgement, recognition, and encouragement but only a small fraction of them hear and believe what they are told.  Many women have the habit of dismissing comments as not accurate or significant...People can make profound differences in emerging leaders, but only if the leaders let them."  What compliments are you dismissing?  What would happen if we believed the positive feedback others give us?

Developing Women Leaders

This week, I want to highlight an insightful piece about how to develop women leaders.  It’s a good guide for those who wish to encourage more women in leadership and for women who aspire to leadership positions. 

The author, Lucy Marcus, recommends five essentials:

1. Developing basic skills, like negotiating and public speaking.
2. International travel, not just because we live in a global world, but because of the impact of experiencing other cultures and new ways of thinking.
3. Mentoring, across all stages of career from student days to the highest levels.
4. Role models, because they foster ideas about what we want to be and how we want to get there.
5. Starting early, by helping girls to think of themselves as leaders and encouraging them to aspire to whatever they want to do.  It is just as important for boys to believe this about women as it is for girls.

I highly recommend reading the entire piece, which provides more detail and can be found here.