The myths that hold back women at the workplace | Star Jones | TEDxVitosha

Hello, everyone. I'm Star Jones, an American lawyer chick heart disease survivor who is free, black, and grown, OK? I'm also the president of the International Association of Women, the largest professional women's networking organization in the US and now global. So I want to thank you for inviting me to the single whitest place I've ever been in my entire life to talk about diversity. Good Lord. But I tell you, your music is great, OK? No, seriously. What an honor it is to stand before you here today at your invitation to talk about diversity, what I see as the global imperative for the world that we live in. Your commitment to this issue, shown by your invitation to me, says you actually feel the same way. In the US and across the globe, the discussion of gender equality and diversity at work is rightfully so an ongoing conversation. Gender inequality, it is an issue. Diversity is a topic on the front burner of the global conversation. But it's still hard for a lot of people to discuss. And I tell you that women must be diligent in keeping this conversation going. Our silence or allowing the dismissal of the topic will really never bring about any change. So I make it a part of my personal mission to speak on this subject and encourage every young woman that I can to achieve her dreams, to never stop being persistent in her pursuit of happiness, and to remain resilient in the fight to put as much glass on the floor as possible as we shatter every glass ceiling above us. That's my goal. Interestingly enough, wherever I am, no matter the country, the issue of gender and wage inequality at work is not a new one. This is not a new phenomenon. And every single country has some work still left to do. Inequality has been an issue since every woman stepped into the workforce or the workplace decades and decades ago. Perhaps this creates an even bigger problem because we're desensitized globally to the issues women face in the workplace. If the conversation of equality and diversity at work is mundane, lighthearted, and nonchalant, well, how are you gonna fight it? How can we be vigilant and take a stand against something that we as a whole within our own communities can easily sweep under the rug and treat it as an issue of the past when we know it's not? One of the many solutions to giving gender equality a voice and a platform that it really deserves is being bold and speaking out against these common myths that treat gender inequality like it's a non-issue. And I guess that's why I'm here and what I plan to do today. I call it The False Five. It's my plan to debunk the myths that hold women back, okay? So today we get to call spades spades as we shine a light on these gender issues that have faded into the backgrounds of our busy lives. So what's that saying? If you tell a lie often enough, you really start to believe it? Well, absolutely. If we keep hearing and embracing these myths and untruths regarding women in the workplace, we will start to believe them as factual representations of the state of gender equality. Some people call it fake news. The bottom line is that you do not have to accept these myths. You don't have to be in that mold. You don't have to accept the status quo. You can create your own reality. Let's get real and break down these myths. Myth number one, women choose to devote their time to their families instead of the workplace. The assumption that women cannot manage a thriving home life and be dynamic at work is absolutely insulting, okay? I bring home the bacon and fry it up in the pan. Let me be real clear on that. As if we cannot be great at more than one area in our lives. No manager or HR professional should be assuming that a woman would not want a promotion or to lead a project because, oh, that means that's more work hours and I don't think so. Well, equally insulting is the assumption that a woman who chooses not to have children or hasn't had them yet is available to take the load or pick up the slack from the rest of the team because she's supposedly obligation free. You don't know what I have to do. That don't mean I'm more available, what? I've witnessed this and experienced it in my own career for the past 30 years. I'm getting married in March. And with my marriage comes the most delightful, delicious, and devilishly handsome 12-year-old boy you have ever met. I love him in a space where there is no place or time, but trust me, when I need to get on a plane and travel halfway around the globe for work, my bonus son says, you go, Zhima, which is the Chinese word for stepmother. He didn't like stepmother. He says it's a negative connotation. Having children is not an excuse to withhold a growth opportunity from a woman at work, nor are children the only family structure or responsibility outside of work that a woman can have. Health and welfare mean something. Women are often the pillars of our homes and our communities, and for women, our families are not an excuse. They are our reason. We are innately great at multitasking, okay? Baby, I'm gonna be the face of heart disease in the United States. I'm gonna help lead the February Go Red events throughout the whole month, okay? I'm planning a March wedding on a 5,000-person cruise ship with 150 wedding guests. I'm organizing the bell ring ceremony and an entrepreneur's conference at the opening of the NASDAQ in April. I'm participating in a capital-raised roadshow for my publicly traded company and coaching my new son on his next Glee Club performance and debate tournament, which, by the way, he came in third the last time we worked together, okay? And the topic was STEM and global warming. I had to learn about that. If you want something done, ask a woman. We get it done, okay? We get it done. Time to play. Oh, and by the way, I do know how to bring in help. The ability to successfully delegate is a trait of any good leader. Well, we do not have to choose one or the other. We just have to work smarter. When women succeed at work and financially, her whole family succeeds and reaps the benefits of the fruits of her labor. Myth number two, women leaders are too emotional. Oh, please, get out of my face with that. Too often in my career as an attorney and a prosecutor, I've seen women overlooked or men preferred in the courtroom. No one dares say it out loud, but they really do show their sexism in other ways. Oh, you know, he's a bulldog in the courtroom. He's better connected. Oh, he was at the top of his class. Versus the comments for women, she's such a beautiful girl. Oh, she's not bad to be so young. Oh, I wonder, will he be assisting her in that case? I could go on and on, but still, I did not accept that perception. I created my own reality. So when I started my legal career in the New York District Attorney's Office, I made it my mission, hey, to do my job, to seek justice. That's the job of a prosecutor and not to let gender get in the way. Mind you, I worked with predominantly men. So before I left to start my media career, I was actually the youngest senior assistant district attorney whose specialty was homicide and serious felony offenses before I was 30 years old, while amassing the best record in the whole entire office, 98% conviction rate, which is still the best 25 years later. Ask my defendants if I was too emotional. I still get letters from the people I put in prison. That is very weird to get that. Dear Mrs. Jones, I don't like that. Women leaders are not too emotional. There's a time and a place, though, where a great showing of empathy is needed in the workplace, like when I worked with the victims of crime. But a woman's ability to show empathy, use thoughtfulness, and her intuition is not a sign of weakness. It makes for a really positive work culture, and it certainly does not lead to emotional decision-making. Statistics on women in leadership just don't support this myth. I'm a data-driven person. So there's new data from the Peterson Institute of International Economics, and they analyzed results from nearly 22,000 globally public traded companies in 91 countries around the world from various industries and sectors. And it showed that having at least 30% of women in leadership positions, or in the C-suite as we call it, adds literally 6% to the net profit margin of a business. Having more women in the C-suite roles is good for business, not just the right thing to do, it's the smart thing to do. It has been proven that companies who have more women in C-suite roles perform better than their competitors. This is the bottom line. This drives the decisions. And the sooner companies realize that and see the financial benefit of having more women executive leaders in their roles, the sooner attitudes and the work culture will change. Myth number three. Women in Hollywood do not face gender inequality. Oh, the mighty dollar. Do you think that wealth and success can exclude a woman from gender bias and inequality? Uh-uh. How about the glitz and the glamor of Hollywood? Absolutely not. The Me Too movement in our country right now is showing that and it is spreading around the world. Sexism is alive and well in Hollywood. You need another example? Here, I'm standing right in front of you. It's not sexual harassment I'm dealing with, but when I was overweight, and I mean overweight, I used to weigh 300 pounds and my heart was failing my body. I was literally ostracized in the media and criticized even more when I decided to have weight loss surgery to save my life. You know what I learned? Whether I was a size 22 or a size six, my weight, my hair, my makeup, my love life, down to the words I used, honey, that got me labeled as angry or feisty, was constantly under a microscope and talked about. But did males in my field face the same scrutiny at that time? Oh, heck no. And I'm not the only one. The movies and the studies conducted throughout 2015 showed that there are still ridiculously few films being made with female protagonists. There are even fewer being helmed by female directors, but that is changing. And there is a decrease in women who have actually helped producing roles, but that is a changing factor. Women in Hollywood, such as actresses like Nia Long and Meryl Streep, my favorite, Patricia Arquette, Gabrielle Union, and countless others, have all spoken out against wage inequality in the city of bright lights. Wage inequality, that's the big deciding factor. Established actresses, especially those of color, are paid significantly less for quality roles than their male counterparts. Also, they and other television personalities are judged more harshly for their appearances. So from the tiniest no-name city to one of the most popular cities in the world, whether she works in a mail room or is a rising executive or is the Hollywood It Girl, women everywhere are burdened with the wage gap, and that is the decision-making. Wage gap is gender bias. Myth number four, women are just not interested in technology and other male-dominated industries. Just stop, that's just some crap, okay? Although industries such as technology and male-dominated other fields, women are unapologetically skilled to participate in such industries and are joining male-dominated fields in record numbers. I hear that is something Bulgaria has over a lot of other countries. Of course, they're interested. Of course, women are interested. We can see the growing number of women interested in technology just by looking at the overwhelming number of women seeking and achieving technology degrees. If you wanna work in this area, you are learning about this area. In 2016, women earned over 50% of the bachelor degrees in science and engineering and nearly 40% in math, okay? Girl, doing it! Still, women can hold, or only hold, excuse me, about 25% of the STEM, and we're talking science, technology, engineering, and math occupations. Come on! What is worse is the few who do make it in these male-dominated industries are super successful and they still earn less than the men. Male-dominated occupations generally pay more than female-dominated occupations, but women made less than men, even in the median weekly earnings of every male-dominated occupation in 2016. I'm data-driven. So let's be completely clear and bust this myth wide open. The interest of women in technology and engineering is there, but the equal opportunity is not. This is yet another myth that we will not accept. Myth number five. Younger women are more valuable at work. I'm 55, this is a myth I prove false every day, okay? Sure, oh yeah, 55, black don't crack, uh-uh, no, no. Sure, there are companies who prefer to fill certain positions with new graduates or millennials, especially if they're looking for fresh energy, talent to mold, and a lower salary to pay due to lack of experience because that's the way they put you. Vibrant, smart young women definitely are welcome and are growing in the workplace. This is not a competition, chicks, not at all. We can all have a seat at the table. But never feel like because you are in your 40s or your 50s or even your 60s that you hold no value in your field. If you're excellent at what you do, I'm willing to bet you will get better with time, like fine wine. Your network, your skill, your trial and error experience that been there, done that stuff, it's so profound at this point. And if your current company does not value your wisdom, it may be time for you to seek a company that does and understands your value. You are valuable. And if you're living and breathing, your work is not done. To every woman under the sound of my voice, do not add a projected date to every milestone you hope to reach. This is my best advice. No, you will not accomplish all of your life's goals by age 35. Who told you that crap? Maybe not even by 45. You are a fine wine, ladies. And age and wisdom will look good on you. Your talent, your character, your skills and your passion, they are a journey, not a destination. And we will develop it over time. Barbara Streisand said, hmm, myths are a waste of time. They prevent progression. I couldn't agree more. Let me be really real. I grew up in the public housing projects of New Jersey. I knew that a solid education was my only ticket out. I was more than willing to use my money for my low paying job. I was a fry girl at McDonald's. It was my first job. And all the birthday gifts to help pay for my education and all the prep courses that I needed. I knew the value of education and it's no secret to any wise and driven woman. Sources such as Forbes and Yale and the Bureau of Labor Statistics have all recently reported that women are achieving higher education in higher numbers than men are. About 36% of women in the ages of 25 to 34 have a bachelor's degree or higher compared with about 28% of men who are also of the same age. Also, about 29% of both men and women of all ages have a bachelor's degree or higher. So while these numbers may seem impressive, women with bachelor's degrees make an average of, hear this, $50,000 a year, which is the same average earning for a man with an associate degree. You heard me right. Your sparkly diploma to state your fancy degree from your renowned school still does not close the wage gap. Even that doesn't between men and women. So are we as women making strides? Yes, absolutely. This is not, oh, woe is us. We are smart and resourceful. Yes. Do we still have more work to do? Oh, yes. We have more noise to make. We have more equality to achieve. Those are absolute yes. If you are in a hiring or managerial position, hopefully you will ask yourself going forward, what type of work culture do I provide? Do I self-consciously perpetuate and support gender equality myths? If you're currently climbing the corporate ladder, I hope you are motivated to speak up, male or female, to disrupt, to claim what is yours, wherever you are in your life. You might wanna ask yourself, what can I do? Remember, gender and wage inequality is not so big and systematic that your efforts or our efforts and decisions as leaders hold no impact. We control it. And if you are not going to join the vigorous fight for equality and diversity, simply support another woman. The world will make you think that you and other women are competing for the same prize. No. Social media will have you comparing shades of grass, relationships, successes, and dress sizes. Under no circumstances must you accept or participate in this dog-eat-dog culture. I can tell you, a rising tide lifts all boats. There's enough success to go around. Supporting other women is your mission. Supporting other women should be your life's mandate, and you will be happier and widely respected due to your willingness to lift other women up. Doubt less, dream bigger, and soar. We can be unstoppable if you just dream, rise, and lead. Thank you all.