Building Prequal: I'm Here to Make Friends | Vol 15
By: Andrea Mac | October 26, 2023
If you can only handle me in small doses:
It’s my favorite season – Budgeting and Planning Season. I love the process of setting objectives and goals.
I facilitated a meeting yesterday, and the “icebreaker” was “What’s the most boring thing you can share about yourself?” Does the fact that I geek out over budgeting and planning count?
You know what’s even weirder – I can’t even remember what boring fact I shared. And it was only yesterday. It must have been really boring if I can't remember my own fact.
Building Prequal #15: I'm Here to Make Friends
I mentioned two weeks ago that I went to ChiefX (and made quite an impression). Aside from the story I already shared, it's taken me a while to digest the whole experience and think about what I want to say about what that conference meant to me and why. ChiefX was a unique experience on its own. I am not often surrounded by hundreds of driven, high-performing women for days at a time.
As I've climbed the corporate ladder, I've seen fewer women in my spaces. It's the nature of women and work. Buckle up for some stats. Women hold less than 25 percent of executive-level positions, according to McKinsey's joint report with LeanIn.Org, Women in the Workplace 2021. As of 2023, women hold just 10.4% of CEO positions at the 500 largest public companies. We are in the numerical minority.
As a woman operating in this space, I have noticed some traits and characteristics of my fellow women in C-suite positions and those running their own companies. I'm not here to speak to the experience of all female founders and executives, but here are eight commonalities I've observed recently.
Friends
There's a famous line born of reality T.V., the designated antagonist often claims, "I'm not here to make friends." When I was at ChiefX, I met women across age groups, verticals, and industries, and most claimed they were at Chief specifically to meet friends. There are fewer female peers with our shared experiences the higher we climb in business. And while many of my close friends are men, I do think there's a different type of relatability among women. That's why I suspect “make friends:” is high on the list.
Support
My support structure is everything, and it's never far from my mind. At Chief, there's a lot of discussion about what that support means to us and how we could not do what we do without our people. And even for those without a strong support structure – the point is, it’s top-of-mind in one way or another.
Guilt
Most of our jobs are not 9-5, dial-it-in jobs, so giving back to our support system can be challenging. It often feels like we're simultaneously being pulled in opposite directions toward the most essential things in our lives. Within a support system, there must be some reciprocity, which can be hard to balance for high-performing professionals and senior executives. We hear a lot about “mom-guilt” but behind closed dorrs, I think there are varioations of this, with spouse-guilt, child-guilt, friend-guilt etc. There is only so much of us to go around and that creates a regular tug.
Hustle
Most of the women I've met through Chief are self-made and self-motivated. There's a lot of grit and hustle, but not in the way "the hustle" often gets glorified. Theirs is a hustle that doesn't worship the grind for the sake of the grind. It's a hustle demonstrating how these women have carved their own well-worn path through sheer determination and intelligence. It's a hustle I know and respect.
Joy
Having a demanding career and very high aspirations doesn't always leave time for other pursuits. I've been working to cultivate what brings me joy. And I'm not alone. Within spaces like Chief, there's a lot of conversation around self-care and, to some extent, self-preservation. What do I do in my spare time? How do I replenish my energy? How do I avoid burnout? What actually brings me joy? We're all asking these questions. When we have been so focused on work, we must consider how to intentionally make time for fun, personal interests, or hobbies.
Legacy
I feel like when women reach a certain point on the proverbial ladder, they start considering their impact. When you're at the point in your career where you're in a C-level position or running your own company, your legacy is top of mind. The women I met and know have gained tremendous wisdom and experience and, as a result, are asking themselves, "What am I going to do with it?" When you reach the top of the ladder, you start looking down, looking around, and making conscious decisions about your time and your impact, so legacy building is top of mind.
Help
Overwhelmingly, the women at the senior level have an immense desire to help other women. I have not met a woman in a similar position as mine who wouldn't do a favor, pull a resource, or assist another woman if possible. They're also incredibly reliable. I've never met a Chief woman who will say something and not do it. They keep their word. There's this common misconception about women at the top being territorial, pushing others out, or being defensive. That has yet to be my experience.
Yes, these are blanket statements and generalities, but this has been my experience, not only in with my Chief counterparts but in my circles of professional women. As more women continue to take up space at the top, we need to speak to what work and life look like at this level. It's important to share these insights to build a community for the women in my space and lend them to the women joining us.
Also, we all, mostly, love a good life hack and time-saving tip.
The end.
-A.
P.S. As I look toward 2024 and the impact I want to make, I have a straightforward question: What do you need? What sales resources could you use? What do you want to know how to do? How can I help?
Email me: andrea@theprequal.com
