My buddy Bill Meade pointed out this article in the Economist to me:. Very interesting and eye-opening about the economic power of women. EVEN today in the modern, developed world, surveys show that parents still prefer to have a boy rather than a girl. Yet it is time for parents to think again. Girls may now be a better investment. Call me old-fashioned, but kids have been home alone or raised by strangers long enough.
I have twin girls aged six and have always thought they were easier to raise than my hyperactive boy. And my mom told me at least I have two angels who will look over me in my old age. The strongest argument to me for gender parity in the workplace and at home is that both benefit from diversity. There are as many female consumers as male consumers, and business benefits from the point of view of both.
Likewise, kids benefit from seeing that both parents put care into the home. The Economist article cited by Kawasaki and his friend lists some of the positive differences of having female points of view in high positions of power.
Women have long subsidized work and families with unpaid and underappreciated work, much to their own detriment in regards to power in the public sphere. One of my favorite speakers and entrepreneurs, Guy Kawasaki, points to an Economist article that suggests that despite continued cultural barriers, future economic growth will be driven by women.
That is not true at all. A difference in task does not mean a difference in merit. Taking care of children and tending to emotional matters is just as important as bringing in a pay check if not more so. To that article writer I say pah! Says someone who has been happily marketing to women very successfully for years. Augustina, I hear you about working together bit. The first thing I have to drum into the young women I mentor is that life is a team sport.
