Gender bias and me

- NASSCOM TO STUDY WOMEN’S ISSUES
- HR MANAGEMENT RESISTANT TO WOMEN BEING PROMOTED: EXPERTS
- WOMEN TO CONSTITUTE 45 PERCENT OF IT WORKFORCE BY `10, SAYS NASSCOM

These were some of the news items from an office email that caught my attention. The 2nd and 3rd points sound rather contradictory, don't they? I mean why would more women want to join the workforce if they are going to be overlooked every time the promotions are announced?

What was frustrating me for past few days was that for the first time in my career I came across collagues who seemed to be gender-biased. It always happened with friends. And I have advised them to be calm and deal with it in a matured fashion.

But when it started happening to me I realized why it is not possible "to be calm and deal with it in a matured fashion". Simply because your calm is considered your weakness and your maturity goes unnoticed. To add insult to the injury, the very people who probably can't even spell the word "professionalism" have the cheek to ask you "to be a professional"!

After a while I realized that argueing will get me nothing except for high blood pressure - and possibly ulcers. About the same time a lunch with a friend passing through the city was a wake-up call. He reminded me that my health, peace of mind and personal life were far more important. I knew he was right.

Maybe I am not doing the right thing but I have decided not to lose any more sleep over it.

An old prayer comes to mind:

Oh God give me the strength to change the things that I can control
The patience to accept the things that I cannot control

And the wisdowm to know the difference between the two.

I think I just got wiser! :-)