Another one of my sorority sisters (pretty awesome group!) forwarded the following article to our discussion list –More Than Just a Social Butterfly – about Rachel Sklar, a well-connected woman in New York who is creating a members-only ‘visibility platform’ for accomplished women.
I had been forwarded one of the ‘theli.st‘ emails that her organization produces last week before this article came out, so I started subscribing. I’m two newsletters in, and so far, I’ve found one or two articles each time that I hadn’t heard about and enjoyed reading (the most recent one being the Wellesly commencement speech from last week). I specifically liked this piece of advice – Competing on an even playing field requires you to create your own field, with teammates that respect, and support what it takes for you to be healthy and whole.
I’m not sure if I’m part of ‘theli.st visibility platform’ or not though – the site is in Beta, but I don’t have a login, so I’m guessing not 🙂
While I don’t like the idea of or just going to networking events just to meet people, I do think that there is more women can do to help one another professionally. Since reading Lean In I’ve been watching male/female behavior more intently than before, and guys tend to be very transaction based in business interactions, are clear about what they are looking for, and often ask for it. And – they often get what they want! One of the calls to action from Lean In is to form ‘Lean In Circles’, and I’m considering starting one that is specifically focused on women working together to advance their professional/business goals.
What would it take in a group setting to help you take the next steps in creating your own playing field? Trust, others with similar interests, others making the similar leap?
It would definitely take trust for those circles to work. Women in the 70s weren’t able to trust one another and their “lean-in” like groups fell apart. Women need to learn to support one another. They need to learn to work in teams. As Madeleine Albright says: “There should be a special place in hell for women who do not help other women.”
Best, Madeline
You should start your group, surely it’d benefit many. I think you may like our site as it covers similar topics: signature26.com