Despite ongoing challenges that women in business continue to face, it’s important to recognise the positive progress made in getting closer to hitting a gender-equal ‘playing field’ across every business.
There is a wealth of advice when it comes to female empowerment at work, to ensure that women have more opportunites for equal access to resources, opportunities, and decision-making roles.
Here are just a few helpful pointers to empower women in business.
General Confidence Tips
Women are much more likely to feel underconfident in their abilities. This starts at the recruitment stage, where women want to tick pretty much every box in the person specification before they will put themselves forward for a position, where men are more likely to take a punt with just half the boxes ticked. Of course, as a result women are often more than qualified for the work they do, but yet we still so often feel like imposters!
So, how can you feel more confident? First off. focus on the goals of your business or department. When you see yourself as a key role, rather than personality issues, it can really help.
- Know Your Strengths: Identify and focus on your strengths. Celebrate your achievements and remind yourself of your capabilities regularly.
- Continuous Learning: Invest in your professional development. Acquiring new skills and knowledge boosts confidence.
- Set Clear Goals: Define clear, achievable goals. Progress towards these goals reinforces your sense of accomplishment.
- Speak Up: Practice voicing your opinions in meetings. Your perspective is valuable.
- Seek Feedback: Constructive feedback helps you grow and improves self-assurance.
- Build a Support Network: Surround yourself with mentors and peers who uplift and support you.
You’ve been hired for a reason, and this reason needs to be displayed. Finding your voice in business is a guaranteed way to find daily empowerment from both yourself and your colleagues.
Networking Tips
Connection is vitally important in the business world. Whether it’s internally in an organisation or externally with potential clients, partners, or suppliers, networking can have positive impacts, which can in turn boost feelings of confidence and empowerment. Ensure effective networking by developing social skills in a range of different formats, from events to online forums and meetings with both internal and external staff.
In the digital world we’re living in, make sure to utilise social media and online platforms to form initial connections with relevant content to intrigue both sides of a conversation. LinkedIn is a great place to start for this. Maybe you’ve got a meeting with a prospective client. Researching them prior on LinkedIn could help a world of things. Embrace the tone of their brand, whether they’re evidently formal or more relaxed. The latter could mean a more personal start, exploring simple things like weekend plans to make them feel at ease, whereas the first could mean more professional attire is worn and personal backgrounds aren’t conveyed. This simple networking tool used prior to the meeting could be the difference between securing and not securing that potential client.
Creative Ideation Tips
Whether it’s specific creative ideation to bring more women into your business, internal ideas to promote inclusivity and female empowerment day-to-day, or just general creative ideation for campaigns, this can be a great realm for skillsets to be showcased and developed. As people, we thrive on relevant information that feels relatable and compelling.
Tell real-life stories through your company’s marketing, of women paving the way up the leadership ladder. Highlight achievements, challenges, obstacles overcome, and everything in between; you never know the female talent that could be hiding out there! If creative ideation sessions are done to appeal to women, right down to seemingly simple promotions like job advertisements, women head straight into the interview feeling empowered and therefore more likely to present their best and most confident selves. Think outside the box and support women to feel empowered whenever they connect with your organisation.
Exhibitions and Events Tips
The perfect background for networking, exhibitions, and business events is a powerful way to make those informal and formal connections across an industry or sector. For anyone, not just women, engaging in meaningful conversations and establishing relationships can be the catalyst for empowerment, as it gives key voices in business for other companies, organisations, and people to see. Trade shows in Asia, renowned for their scale and diversity, offer exceptional opportunities for this type of interaction.
They bring together a vast array of industries and professionals, creating a dynamic environment where groundbreaking organisational partnerships and career advancements can take shape. These events are not just about showcasing products; they are hubs for innovation and collaboration. Seemingly simple, yet conversations at events like trade shows could be the catalyst for job promotions, better role moves, or pivotal business alliances. Make sure to follow the event’s dress code and utilise the other tips mentioned above to have the most developmental and innovative conversations to further boost your opportunities
Difficult Conversations Tips
In the business world, difficult conversations and professional disputes are inevitably going to occur in organisations. If anything, these help to create new processes, policies, and services that could in turn be the catalyst for key business growth. Without experimental conversations and discussions, trials and testing would never happen, both of which are key areas for producing growth in a business. It’s more vital than ever to show up to these kinds of conversations composed, assertive, and confident. It’s important to actively listen and try to seek common ground in these situations to ensure everyone can leave them in the meeting room. If anything, encouraging and promoting these conversations yourself is a key way to gain respect from colleagues and therefore feel more empowered at work.
Conclusion
Female empowerment at work is not just a moral imperative; it is also a business strategy that can lead to greater innovation, productivity, and success. By promoting gender equality, creating supportive environments, investing in leadership development, and fostering a culture of inclusion, organizations can empower women to reach their full potential. This, in turn, benefits not only the women themselves but also the entire organization and society as a whole. Empowered women are key to building a more inclusive, equitable, and successful workplace.