When I walked into the first day of my internship this summer, I was slightly terrified to find I was the only woman in the office. I don’t know if we realize how heavily we rely on the camaraderie of our female peers in a workplace setting – but on one particular white-linen pants wearing day, I realized exactly how missed they were. Thankfully, this was just until the remoteness of mid-August came to an end and more employees started coming into the office on a regular basis, but it made me wonder how a woman would thrive in a male-dominated workplace.
This question is not arbitrary to me. I have spent most of the past few years trying to find a balance between running a fashion and beauty magazine, being a part of my college dance team and also being the Sports Editor for our school newspaper. I wasn’t sure if being passionate about one would make others discount my abilities in the other. I wasn’t sure if running from my performance to the post-game press conference in a crop top and fake lashes made me seem inferior to the polo-sporting male counterparts sitting in the media room with me.
For the most part, people accepted the duality of my interests, but there was always the outlier who hounded me on my mid-nineties sports knowledge (I was born in 2000), questioned my terminology, and found ways to make sure it was known to me that I was not the typical sports editor.
And that’s fine because it gave me no choice but to find ways to make sure they knew I was qualified. Here are my tips on how to thrive in a male-dominated field – whether that’s at your first job or simply in a college newsroom.
- Understand Imposter Syndrome and how to overcome it
Imposter Syndrome is the persistent feeling that your success is not deserved or earned. This is a frequent feeling in women in male-dominated fields but isn’t always their own doing.
In fact, in most cases, it is a feeling that has been pushed upon women in the workplace. The Harvard Business Review published an article examining the phenomenon since it was first mentioned in 1978. They argue that feeling unsure about your abilities should not deem you an “imposter,” and by making those implications, especially towards high-achieving women, we are limiting their ability to thrive by setting them up for pronounced insecurities in their work.
It goes on to say that the word “imposter” has criminal-like connotations, making women inherently feel that their entry-level insecurities are incredibly wrong and not okay. The word “syndrome” was paired to induce feelings of female hysteria, furthering the negative connotations of the phrase and placing it on the women themselves to fix the problem.
If you are feeling insecure in your work to the point of diagnosing yourself with Imposter Syndrome, trust that it is the workplace culture that needs to change, not you. The office should cultivate feelings of security and support. If it doesn’t, trust that you have the power to demand that respect and pave the way for your fellow female peers – no matter how outnumbered you may be. The more you read about imposter syndrome, the more confident you will feel speaking out about it.
- Embrace your peers
There are things to learn from the other people in your office – male and female. By creating a positive environment that fosters creativity, problem solving and togetherness, you can optimize your time together and learn from one another.
In terms of men and women in the workplace, it shouldn’t be “us” against “them”, but rather a community of people working towards the same goal. If you work at the same company, chances are you already have similar interests. At the same internship I mentioned previously, I learned so much from the men in my cohort, but also was able to offer ideas and perspectives that they would not have thought of otherwise. Our camaraderie and mutual respect made it easy to share these thoughts and ideas, and didn’t make me feel insecure when I shared an idea that wasn’t accepted. When people come together from different backgrounds – whether that be different gender, races or socioeconomic backgrounds – we hear perspectives we never would have thought to consider.
- Be true to your personality, but understand when it’s time to take charge.
There’s a misconception that in order to thrive as a woman in a male-dominated field you have to take on male stereotypes. Be true to your own personality in the workplace – women are constantly redefining our workplace dynamic. There are no real rules for how a leader “should” act. There is no rule that says you can’t wear fake lashes to post-game interviews.
- Learn about other females in your industry.
Whether it be through reading a self-published book written by a female executive or taking a superior out to coffee, learn how they got to where they are today. The reality is, they have done this before and they do know more than you do when you’re first starting out. That’s not to say you don’t have unique ideas and skills to offer, but rather to suggest that they can share the tricks of the trade.
- Speak up.
You have already earned your seat at the table. Now, it’s your responsibility to utilize that position and show why you’re there. This will not only benefit your career, but all of the women who come after you.
- Empower Other Women.
We are always stronger together. Making sure the women behind you have even more opportunities than you did starting out creates a stronger network of women in male-dominated fields. Help the next in line & be there for the women beside you.