What Do Women Want?

Last week, as I wrote about how “Well-Behaved Women Can Make History”, I had no idea that “A Woman’s Nation” was about to hit. “A Woman’s Nation” is Maria Shriver’s report on the impact that the changing roles of women has had, and is having, on our families, our communities, our businesses, and our country.

The report draws several conclusions, including:

They find that political and business leaders who fail to take steps to address the needs of modern families risk losing good workers and the support of men and women who are riding the crest of major social change in America with little or no support.

Women Have to Work
The truth is that most women have to work full time. Even in two-parent homes, it is not (as some traditionalists would have us believe) about the two cars and the high-def TV and a need for a $4 cup of coffee.

It is about rising costs in key areas such as education and health care, the rising cost of living, as wages have primarily remained flat amongst the middle class. Take that and throw in a recession where one person in that formerly two-income family has now been laid off, and lower-paid women are becoming increasingly responsible for sharing the financial burden. It’s the way things are now.

As discussions are sprouting up around the internet regarding the report, there is still much talk about women looking for respect in the working world -- and about pay levels.
As the report mentions, 50% of the workforce is now female. And as I mentioned last week, 82% of women make buying decisions.

But They’re Doing It All
Unfortunately, many of these same discussions are also indicating that women have been left feeling like they have to do it all. They’re still largely responsible for child-raising or the majority of the work at home while also trying to balance financial responsibility and the challenges they face in the working world.

Which is why we see women forging new paths.

Those businesses that couldn’t provide what many women needed have already lost many of them.

Women as Entrepreneurs
At the same time that all these things were changing, more and more women began to create their own businesses.

Many of the women that I work with left the traditional workforce to start their own business in an effort to create scheduling flexibility, as well as for the opportunity to make more money than a traditional career path offered them.

But There’s a Problem
Starting their own business, these women may have found the ability to be more flexible. But now they just work at midnight. Time is still a problem. They’re still trying to do it all and wondering if they’re doing any role justice.

This is the reason it was no shock to me that as more readers learned about my prior corporate background and work I’ve done with small businesses, it was mainly female entrepreneurs that began to come to me to help them make their businesses run more smoothly.

These women are ‘path-forgers’. They don’t just sit and grumble. They are always looking ahead and moving forward. They will seek out ways to do things better and make things work.

Long Way To Go
We have come a long way. But we still have a long way to go. Some men are asking how they fit into all this. After all, redefining our roles has meant redefining theirs. But smart men know this all works out for the best for everyone concerned in the long run.

Clear Path
There is no clear path forward. But now we can begin talking about where we go from here, given both the myriad of choices but also the challenges we face in modern society.

I am encouraged as I see many women, entrepreneurs especially, going out and creating paths that work for them rather than waiting for the working world to catch up. They're defining their role, what works for them, and making it happen.

Most importantly, given the wide range of choices we now have, we need to continue to support each other as we make those choices and work together as we move ahead.
We can help each other forge new paths and move forward to create policies in politics and systems in businesses that are better, while we continue creating lives and businesses that fulfill us and serve those around us.