Just Sheryl Sandberg once again dropping some incredibly important lady-tech wisdom
Sheryl Sandberg, the COO of Facebook and founder of LeanIn.org is continuing to blow our minds by throwing out some sage words on women in the workplace. Namely: there aren’t enough of them and it’s high time to fix that.
In a video for a very cool organization Ignited Leadership (that strives to teach young people about the potential of civic engagement), Sandberg urges all watching to recognize the importance of having women contributing in the fields of science and technology. “No industry or country can reach its full potential until all women reach their full potential,” she says. Amen sister.
She continues, “And this is especially true in science and technology, where women with a surplus of talent still face a deficit of opportunity . . . we expect men to lead and women to follow . . . men to innovate and women to support.” This support and follow dynamic is such an interesting one and so well stated here by Sandberg. It’s a dynamic we NEED to change. Men and women should both be supporting and innovating and only by leveling the playing field for all will we be able to innovate on a higher level.
Sandberg has said in the past that feminism is important to her — not because it strives to put women on top, but because it emphasizes an equal standing for men and women. “I embrace the word ‘feminism,” she previously told the Huffington Post. “I embrace it now because what feminism is, is a belief that the world should be equal, that men and women should have equal opportunity.”
The really awesome thing about Sandberg’s words is that they’re motivating. “Since there aren’t enough female leaders today, and since there are not enough women in science and technology, our voices are not being heard,” she says. Doesn’t that make you want to get your voice heard?
Basically, because female voices are being left out of many important conversations in the world of science and technology, important ideas and solutions are also being pushed to the side. Which means, nobody benefits. This phenomenon is also in NO WAY specific to the world of science and tech. Women need to be feeling more empowered across all fields, in order for the entire world to benefit from what opportunities and solutions that could yield. In order for women to reach their full potential, we need to be supporting one another each and every step of the way.
You can watch the clip of Sandberg below — and hopefully you’ll be geeking out over her just as much as we are.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qABbIKiiISY
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