The Feminine Economy

How many times have you said to yourself, "Ugh! If only I had more time!" or "If only I had more time for me!" But you keep going, you keep giving, time keeps passing you by and you keep wishing you had more of it.

Well, it looks like our hard work, as women in the home and the office, over the last 50 years is paying off. Women have felt the pressure to choose between their children and their careers for a very long time now, and it looks like that era may be coming to a close. Companies are now seeing that women are more productive, they work harder and they make more money for the companies they work for. Likewise, stay-at-home moms are branching out and starting businesses that work for them and their families at breakneck speed. And I say, it’s about freakin’ time! Good for us!

This weekend on the Chris Matthews Show, two women and broadcast powerhouses, Claire Shipman and Katty Kay, who co-wrote the book Womenomics discussed the power of women in today’s market with two other female panelists. The publishing of this book is very timely, as companies are finding that when they allow their workers to have more flexible time the company as a whole does better. It’s not just about being “worker friendly” or “peace and love to our employees,” it’s about business. It’s about productivity. It’s about money for the company.  And the coup de grace: companies that employ more women are performing better during this recession.

Do you know how much power that gives us? We are the backbone of the economy, you and I. Women make 80% of all financial decisions in this country right now: cars, homes, clothes, food, vacations and household supplies. So it actually makes sense that we are the drivers of companies too. If we represent the demographic that makes 80% of all financial decisions, it would follow that we can help companies learn what we need, when we need it and how to get it to us.

In fact, the overall trend is that companies who have more women in powerful positions do better. Women bring something to the workplace, that men aren’t always able to provide. Because women are able to access our "masculine" side (the cold-hard-facts, all business side) and our "feminine" side (the compassionate, multi-tasking, emotionally intelligent side), we are able to provide companies and employees with a richer and more nuanced work experience through our leadership. For further discussion of this idea, I highly recommend the book See Jane Lead. In that book, author Lois P. Frankel addresses this very idea and she gives great advice on leading and provides hands-on advice and tips. It’s a great read and I found it highly motivating.

In addition to all this great news, there is a group of women who stand out even inside this trend. You guessed it, moms.  Moms are finally starting to get more of what we want and what we really need: TIME. Moms in the workplace who are good producers, who do a great job and who are esteemed by their colleagues are being rewarded more often when they ask for flexible work schedules. Yep, that’s right. Because women workers are being acknowledged in this economic cycle as invaluable contributors to overall productivity, we are in a position to exercise our influence and negotiate competitively as never before.

Indeed, the hand that rocks the cradle does, in fact, rule the world.

I write about this first and foremost because it’s really cool, for lack of a better word...(cont.)

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