Find Your Girl Squad
March 18, 2019 by Heather Fuller
Girl squad, women’s pack, female tribe…call it what you will; the benefit is the same. It is real, and it works. I know this because I am a beneficiary of it. I have been encouraged and supported by other women throughout my career. I have in turn tried to repay that favor by helping other female contemporaries because I have learned that women supporting other women benefits everyone. Both sides of the equation, and beyond, find success through this support. Not a surprise that research has shown that there is benefit from collaboration over competition and women’s close inner circle of female contacts proved critical in their professional achievement.
New research in the Harvard Business Review finds that while both men and women benefit from having a network of well-connected peers across different groups, women who also have an inner circle of close female contacts are more likely to land executive positions with greater authority and higher pay, while there was no link found for the success of men in terms of the gender composition of their inner circles
So, find other female professionals who can give you career support, guidance, and friendship. Seek out a mentor who can help you navigate your profession and obstacles such as implicit bias. Benefit from their experience and contacts. Then reciprocate. Pay it back by supporting a mentee. Inspire and empower a female colleague. Find your girl squad.
Success is never achieved alone and is sweeter shared. When we support each other, incredible things happen. Championing other women does not mean suppressing or excluding men. It merely means celebrating and building upon the achievements of the women who came before us, the ones upon whose shoulders we stand. So, don’t be afraid to ask for or to give help. Remember, real queens fix each other’s crowns.