Feminist Girl Meets (Real) World

While I normally try to incorporate a good deal of feminist rhetoric into my posts, today I want to take a different approach to my discourse.  It’s more of a personal “a-ha!” moment I encountered, but it seemed worthy of sharing, and perhaps someone will get a little encouragement out of it as well.

I’m a senior this year, and I am beyond fortunate to already have a great job that stemmed from a successful internship experience this past summer.  It’s in a field I am absolutely passionate about, and the opportunity to get a leg up on a “big girl” position before graduating is such a blessing.  Additionally, it gives me an informed perspective as both a student and a young professional. 

To put it bluntly, I’m a feminist that sometimes feels like she’s in over her head in the world of “Corporate America.”  There are times when I feel totally unsure of myself, under-qualified, and out of my league—typical sentiments felt by budding professionals.  In addition to assuring you that it’s totally normal to feel this way, and that you’ll be just fine, I want to give a few pieces of advice that I’ve learned in my (brief) experiences being thrust into the “real world” that will hopefully be empowering.

1.  Find a female mentor.

My supervisor is a phenomenal woman.  She’s brilliant, talented, well-spoken, firm, feminist, and an honest individual.  Learning from her has at times been challenging, but always enlightening.  In one conversation I had with her about six months ago, she advised me to take an honest look at my language.  I learned that I qualify pretty much everything that comes out of my mouth, and am overly apologetic when I mess-up.  She said, “Being a woman in this business is tough, because unfortunately there is a large majority of men, and many of them won’t listen to you unless you give them a reason to.  You have to commit to yourself, and to everything that you do.  The best way you can apply your feminism in this setting is to feel empowered, and own that empowerment.  The rest will come naturally.  And don’t say you’re sorry—say ‘I apologize’, and move the hell on.”  Uhh, best advice ever.

2.  Fake it till you make it.

The other day, I walked into a roundtable discussion with ten CFO’s of major corporations—$250 million was in the room.  And that scared the hell out of me.  However, I swallowed my nerves, kept my chin up, and extended a firm handshake and cordial introduction.  If you act confident, you’ll feel confident.

3.  Don’t be the girl in the corner.

I recently attended a symposium (yeah, big-girl word!) where a series of panelists gave mini-lectures, then gave everyone an opportunity to “meet and greet” and ask questions, etc.  My role was to be on the event coordinating team—making sure things were moving smoothly, and that all was going according to plan.  Instead of letting the housekeeping work be the extent of my role, I decided to reach out and learn something new.  I approached one woman who addressed a topic that was outside of my background, and explained that I was interested in her field of study, but I wasn’t certain on the details of her work.  I then asked her to elaborate, which she did happily.  We proceeded to have a great conversation, where she gave incredibly helpful professional advice.  Moral of the story?  Don’t be the girl in the corner, and never be afraid to go above and beyond what’s asked of you.  You just might make a new connection, or find a new opportunity.

While I’m still incredibly new to the idea of being a grown-up (or at least acting like one from 9-5), the confidence that my feminism has given me has given me the drive I need to carry over into the real world.  I know I’m just beginning, but I feel like the strides I’ve been making in my professional life have only worked to empower me, and make me feel like a kick-ass woman in my own right.