IWD2022: Could gender balance be a question of masculine and feminine energy?

Gender Balance is often discussed at organisational level. In this video I focus on Gender Balance at an individual level.

What is your energy balance within yourself? Can you access more masculine traits as feminine traits? We can also refer to this as more Yin and Yang energy.

Often the debate is around women not having a seat at the table, being misunderstood by their male bosses, being stereotyped in a unfavourable way, subject to sexual discrimination or harassment. I have experiences all these this as a high performer in the Tech Sales space in the height of the Cloud bubble for leading hyper-growth American companies. This is all very real!

My angle is more focused on the fact that some women in high powered position have an easier time accessing masculine energy and could struggle sharing vulnerability. I was one of them. My working environment was mostly with men. I had to adapt to that and tapped into more masculine energy to fit in. It served me well professionally, however it did cost me personally as I became less in touch with my softer feminine energy, especially in times of high pressure. I lost balance.

Some men are very compassionate which can be viewed as a more feminine trait and may have more assertive and confidence issues. My point here is that it can work the other way around too!

To support women in the workplace:

Be in touch with your own vulnerability 

People make emotional decisions which they then rationalise to themselves.  Life is relationships. Work is Relationships. Relationships are emotional connections. This stands for men and women.

Manage your energy to better adapt 

Some universal character traits are perceived as more feminine in nature. By understanding how easily accessible this is for you, you can identify if this is an area you need to energise and practice to feel less effort when having more emotionally sensitive conversations. When we are stressed, we have low energy and struggle to access less comfortable ways of being. The Process Communication Model® is a tool which can help you identify how easy this may be for you at an individual level. 

Build your confidence 

When we feel more secure in understanding our emotional baggage and we can learn to accept this and find more confidence by not being defined by it. Self-understanding and compassion will take away the power we give our emotional triggers. Self-awareness can go a long way to start reducing our emotional reactivity. 

Call To Action

Become comfortable with the uncomfortable!

Self-awareness is a Superpower for leaders. By better understanding yourself you can learn to energise yourself, to adapt to others who may require you to lean into your more emotional self. By investing in better managing your emotions, you will also build your confidence when having uncomfortable conversations.

Lauren Cartigny is an ICF certified professional coach in individual, leadership, team, and organisational coaching, and the founder of The Self-Science Lab Ltd, a community of conscious professionals on a self-discovery journey to transform the quality of their work and home lives. 

Article Published on Lauren Cartigny's LinkedIn Profile on the 8 March 2022