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For years, I found myself cringing at slogans like "The future is female," never fully understanding why.
I know now why - but let me explain:
For the first 15 years of my career, it was glaringly clear that women were valued less—less in pay, respect, and opportunity. What we were "worth" seemed to boil down to being ogled, laughed at, and dismissed.
So, how did I respond?
So, we're almost halfway through the year. A good time to take stock: How are your good intentions from the beginning of the year coming along? Have you already given up? Or did you not set any at the beginning because you never keep them anyway?
Then let me start by saying: it's not up to you!
We women now know that status symbols are important. Even if we secretly smile about them.
There's not a single career guide that doesn't include a chapter on company cars, the size of the office, or a parking space on the company premises.
The career-conscious man uses status symbols to show his environment what status - i.e. what rank - he has. So status must obviously be important.
But did you know that there is another axis to consider besides status or rank? If you're a man, you're probably wondering why she's writing about something that's so obvious. If you're a woman, you might wonder, "What is she even talking about?".
I am taking about territory. The dictionary defines it as “(an area of) land,…, that is considered as belonging to…a particular … person”. Animals defend their territory because it gives them access to resources and this is worth defending. The defense of this area is also called territorial behavior and this also exists in humans.
Why is this important? And what does this have to do with our everyday life in companies?
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