The Promotable Woman is a comprehensive career guide for any woman looking to grow her professional skills and overcome obstacles in the workplace. While many of the strategies are applicable for both genders, the book touches on some important topics that relate specifically to women. The author approaches these topics tactfully, recognizing gender gaps with honesty and citing scientific research.
Women-Specific Workplace Issues
While the role of women in the workplace has certainly changed in the past few decades, there are still many stereotypes affecting their ability to compete with their male counterparts. Women encounter a different set of professional obstacles and many women experience difficulties maintaining the appropriate level of assertiveness needed to achieve long-term career success. This book confronts these common challenges and provides simple, straight-forward advice for conquering these professional barriers.
The Promotable Woman asks the reader to focus on two key areas: the woman’s own image of her role in the workplace and how her behavior reflects that, and the stereotypes others have about women. In particular, the book addresses power. Many women don’t recognize their own power and aren’t comfortable exerting the power they possess, which can greatly hinder their ability to be seen as leaders. Through exercises and thought-provoking questions, this book helps the reader identify her own self-limiting beliefs and areas in which she may be failing to project the strong image needed to achieve career success. It also provides simple strategies for handling conflict and being assertive without being aggressive.
Relationships are another area in which women experience more complication than men. It’s important for women to draw clear boundaries in the workplace while still making connections and creating a strong support network. The author outlines specific strategies for maintaining appropriate relationships and “emotional distance” while at work.
Managing emotions is probably one of the most common areas where women have problems in the workplace. The exercises in this book are very effective for building awareness, channeling stressful feelings and, ultimately, using emotions constructively to resolve issues.
Women experience a variety of obstacles in the workplace. While they have more opportunities today than ever before, there are still many remaining cultural barriers and stereotypes to overcome. The Promotable Woman is a wonderful resource, especially for young women just entering the workforce. Women who have been in the field for a while will likely be familiar with many of the issues presented here but may still find the strategies insightful and the exercises thought-provoking.
Sources:
The Promotable Woman by Norma Carr-Ruffino, Ph.D. The Career Press, 2005
ISBN: 1-56414-776-2
Christine Scivicque - Chrissy has been a passionate student of personal development for over 15 years. With a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration ...
