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Women and
Ambition
The Project,
the Issues, the Research
"Even when the path is
nominally open -- when there is nothing to prevent women from
becoming a doctor, a lawyer, a civil servant -- there are many
phantoms and obstacles looming in her way. To discuss and define
them is of great value and importance; for thus only can the
labour be shared, the difficulties solved."
-- Virginia Woolf
In October 2004, my mother told me
about a book called, Necessary Dreams: Ambition in Women's
Changing Lives, by Anna Fels. Fels, a NYC
psychiatrist, researched women's attitudes towards ambition and
the paths women take to reach their goals. She defines ambition
as a combination of mastery and recognition, and suggests that the
recognition aspect of ambition most creates ambivalence in women.
Fels makes this provocative claim:
"Women tend to feel foolish asking for
more attention for their contributions. The mandate that females
provide recognition to males is a basic requirement of the white,
middle-class notion of femininity. Challenging this state
of affairs is a high-risk, potentially high-loss venture" (pp.
47-8).
Another recent book, Women Don't
Ask, by Linda Babcock and Sara Laschever, looks at research
showing that women generally accept less pay than men and often do
not ask for more. Pay is a very concrete form of recognition.
Initially, I looked at ways to turn the scholarly work of both
books into exercises, activities, and discussion topics to help
women address ambition issues in their own lives. Since 2005,
I've run ambition talks and workshops for women in Ontario,
Alberta, and BC. We've discussed the following questions:
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What is a
flourishing life? Are women flourishing in the workplace?
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Is it a
problem for society when educated women are not working, work
part-time, or work at areas outside of their training? Why?
- Why are educated women often with graduate degrees leaving
the workforce to have their families? (How do they feel, what
happens when they try to return, how do their partners feel?)
- Is there another "ceiling" besides the glass one? What is
it? Can it be melted?
-
Is it different
when there is a woman on top? How? What changes can women make
when they are in decision-making positions?
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Are women
workers considered less valuable than men workers? How do we
know?
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What issues do
women face (that men don't) in thinking about personal ambitions?
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Why are women in
male-dominated fields such as science and engineering particularly
important in this discussion?
- Are there situations that face women in science and technology
that men do not have to deal with?
Are there any
ways younger women who love their work can prepare their
lives without having to sacrifice either their career or
their family?
What does it
mean to negotiate equality at home as we seek equality in the
workplace?
What does it
mean for a workplace to be "family-friendly". What is the
reality?
Here are the
descriptions and links to some of the recent ambition sessions.
More workshops are in the works:
March 12, 2007
SCIbermentors
University of Calgary
Calgary, AB
Women, Science, and Ambition
March 10, 2007
Irving K. Barber School of Arts and Sciences and
the Jade Project
UBC Okanagan
Kelowna, BC
Dare to Be Ambitious
Available to undergraduate women interested in
careers in the sciences.
For more information, see
School
of Graduate Studies
UBC
Okanagan
Kelowna, BC
Women and Ambition: Dreaming Beyond
Ambivalence
Available to Women Grad
Students
Do you sometimes feel
ambivalent towards aspects of ambition? Does it
frustrate you when people encourage you or pressure
you to be more ambitious? What are the factors
affecting women's attitudes towards ambition and
recognition?
This provocative, interactive discussion will
explore how ambition plays out in the lives and minds
of graduate students. We will look at the sources of
women's ambitions and how our own attitudes and the
attitudes of others may influence the personal and
professional decisions we make. Examples from the
lives of successful Canadian women will be shared.
March 5,
2007 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Society of Canadian Women in Science and Technology
YWCA, 535 Hornby St. 4th Floor
Vancouver, BC
Women and Ambition:
Revisited
Available to
members of SCWIST and other Vancouver women in the sciences.
One year after the
initial ambition workshops with graduate students at SFU and
UBC, we will revisit the topic of ambition and explore the
challenges and changes we have experienced.
Feb. 28, 2007, 5:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Women in Engineering and Computer Science and DAWEG
University of Victoria
Victoria, BC
Live Ambitiously: Degrees, Careers, and our
Personal Lives
Open to all women in science in the Victoria area
In this workshop, we will:
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Explore our attitudes towards our careers, dreams, and
ambitions in the sciences.
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Look at influences in the culture, in the workforce, and
in us that discourage us from dreaming big.
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Prepare ourselves for these influences and be ready to
counteract them.
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Discover ways not to let our careers unravel when
children and family become part of our lives.
Here's an article the University
of Victoria student newspaper on this workshop:
November 17-21, 2006
University of Victoria
Victoria, BC
Women and Ambition: What's Holding You Back
A series of six workshops aimed at faculty, staff,
students, alumni and members of the public in Victoria.
See
http://web.uvic.ca/transition/ambition/index.html for
details and descriptions of all the events, including notes
and a bibliography.
June 22-25,
2006 Calgary, Alberta
CCWESTT Conference (Canadian
Coalition for Women in Engineering, Science, Trades and
Technology)
Necessary
Dreams: A Workshop Exploring Women and Ambition
Ambition brings together a desire
for both mastery and recognition. While women seek
mastery as avidly as men do, they often defer recognition
to others. Are women ambivalent about seeking recognition
for their achievements or about being known as ambitious?
Might this ambivalence be affecting our success and
contribute to the low numbers of women in non-traditional
fields? In this workshop, participants will investigate
their feelings about professional advancement, goals and
dreams, autonomy, and success.
This workshop gives women
guidelines for envisioning their future by formulating and
examining goals and then looking at what might be blocking
them from achieving these goals – both internal and
external factors. Blocks may include the difficult task
of sharing values and responsibilities with one's partner
as well as a corporate culture which might not be
encouraging of women's dreams.
We will then
become aware of tools to help the unblocking process --
tools which include activities, beliefs, resources,
allies, skills, and attitudes. As a result, women
will become more confident and proactive as they pursue
their ambitions.
We will cover a selection of areas
drawn from the following. We wish to
-
uncover our attitudes towards mastery
and recognition
-
examine the consequences of seeking
or achieving mastery without receiving recognition
-
examine the perception we have of
ourselves as protagonists in our narratives
-
explore fears associated with success
and accomplishment
-
identify goals within our chosen
fields
-
explore blocks to achieving those
goals
-
develop tools to help the unblocking
process.
Participants receive a workbook
containing exercises and activities. The workbook draws
its inspiration from Anna Fels's book
Necessary Dreams: Ambition in Women's
Changing Lives (Pantheon,
2004) and Women Don't Ask: Negotiation and the Gender
Divide by Linda Babcock and Sara Laschever (Princeton
University Press, 2003).
April 22, 2006
Soft
Skills for Hard Scientists: A Jade Bridges Project
YWCA, 535 Hornby St. 4th Floor
Vancouver, B.C.
Women and Ambition: Can I Have a PhD and a
Personal Life
A day-long workshop sponsored by The
Jade Project.
January 29, 2006 12:15 - 1:30 p.m. Toronto, ON
University of Toronto
Department of Computer Science
Women's Lunch
Bahen Building Room 7231
Women and
Ambition
Lil will lead a provocative discussion on
how ambition plays out in the lives and minds of women in
the sciences. Lil will share situations faced by successful
women that suggest ambivalence towards aspects of ambition.
She will particularly look at attitudes toward mastery
and recognition and how these attitudes affect our
professional lives.
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TESTIMONIALS
 "I wish you’d
come back to Victoria to give the faculty another session. The few hours I
got to spend with your were some of the most useful I’ve ever spent on
professional development." Lorna Crozier, award-winning poet, professor
University of Victoria
“The ability to communicate effectively is especially
important in my role as an elected official, and I have Lil Blume to thank.
Her communications course has taught me important lessons on how to listen
with empathy and communicate non-defensively – skills that are essential
whether I am in a boardroom debate, being interviewed by the media, or on
the phone with a constituent. Lil is a dynamic and energetic teacher
who delivers with passion."
– Shaun Chen, Trustee (Ward
21, Scarborough-Rouge River), Toronto District School Board
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