For centuries women have played the maternal roles in society in America, it was not until recently that this social norm has begun to die. More and more women are entering the work place and taking over powerful positions. Due to women’s late entrance into the working world, women have definitely experienced many challenges. Despite the  obstacles women continue to persevere through the discrimination they face. When thinking about my own future I already consider the difficulties I may face as I begin to look for internships and jobs in the next couple of years. I know that young women across the country just like me have the same insecure thoughts as I do. This realization of mine brought me to conclude that women must have to focus strongly on their demeanor in the workplace especially because in some situations their every move is being watched. If all women including me were more confident about themselves, I feel that women would be more successful.

Over the course of the past ten years research has shown that women continue to have less self confidence than men and this lack of confidence is impending on women’s success. Claire Shipman an author of The Confidence Code shares that there is a large confidence gap between men and women. Shipman goes on to say that one is not born with confidence, they learn it, and with this she gives three recommendations on how to achieve confidence in the image below.

These three tips definitely sound helpful but exercising these skills in real life would be challenging.

The tips given to women trying to be more confident always connect to masculinity and achieving the level of confidence and assertion that men have. Shipman’s research has found DNA testing results and brain studies that highlight the differences between women and men that cause men to have a higher confidence level than women. One study proved that women’s brains are wired more to worry than males brains. Thus explaining why men are able to take more risks in the work place than women. Also studies have found that women are mainly raised to follow the rules while men are taught to be overconfident. Not only are women and men taught this at a young age but society also implements these societal norms through media. Transferring the findings of Shipman’s studies into the business world it can be assured that with more masculine traits women might be able to achieve more career wise.

The Standford Graduate School of Business recently published a new research using surveys, interviews, and observational data to determine how a women should act in the business world to achieve the most success. This study found that women who are able to have and control their aggression, confidence, and assertion, receive more promotions than most other women and men. This control of behavior is known as self monitoring, which is when an individual regulates their behavior to accommodate a certain social situation. Olivia O’Neil an assistant professor of management at George Mason University states, ”Women may have a ways to go, but their ability to be flexible in how they behave is leading to some extraordinary results. Some women are starting to go very high in the managerial ranks using this strategic approach.” O’Neil’s statement lines up with the findings of the research which were that self monitoring, masculine, women recieved, “1.5 times more promotions than masculine men, and about two times as many promotions as feminine men, regardless of whether the men were high or low self-monitors. They also received 3 times as many promotions as masculine women who were low self-monitors” (Rigoglioso, Marguerite). This behavior pattern clearly majorly benefits women in the work place. Although the last fact proves that in able to successfully use this behavioral pattern women must be both self monitoring and masculine.

From these studies I can conclude that with the balance of confidence, aggression, self monitorization, and assertion, women can definitely improve their behavior in the workplace to help them to be their most successful self!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/anjali-varma/is-confidence-the-key-to-_b_7637504.html

https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/researchers-how-women-can-succeed-workplace

https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/researchers-how-women-can-succeed-workplace