I was listening to the radio as I drove along in the car…
An interview with a prominent woman scientist.
She has achieved all kinds of awards and accolades.
She has worked hard and applied herself.
She has developed life changing technologies.
And in the interview, when asked how she managed to achieve so much, she said…
“I was lucky.”
Seriously?
Really?
That’s all?
But that was all she said.
“I was lucky.”
The truth is…
She worked diligently.
She achieved high grades in school and at college.
She spent long hours, sacrificed and devoted herself to work she loved.
She mixed her education, inspiration and a high degree of professionalism in her work.
And she achieved an incredible result.
That is not luck.
That is devotion, application and work.
A few weeks later I was listening to another interview.
This time with a female CEO.
She had changed the culture of her business.
She had introduced leadership coaching across the company.
They were achieving great results both on the human level and financially.
She had worked her way up through a variety of jobs over the last twenty years.
She had balanced her home and work life to raise her kids and build the business.
She worked long hours.
She had reached a prominent position in her field.
I am sure you can see where this is going…
When she was asked, “What was the reason she had managed to achieve so much…”
She said…
“I was just lucky.”
No mention of the full and human journey that brought her to a point of exceptional success.
She claimed it was all being in the right place at the right time.
And nothing else.
Seriously?
Really?
She may have had some lucky breaks, or serendipity in her career, almost everyone who achieves great things has a few moments like this…
But to simply ignore everything else that enabled her to get where she is today…
All the hard work, education, connections, flexibility, personal development, and skills that it took…
And say it was all luck…
Nope.
No way.
This was twice in just a few weeks that I had heard this response.
And then…
Just to bring it to my attention again…
A prominent female politician was retiring from her electorate.
“When I think back over my many years in politics, I cannot help but feel it was luck that brought me here…”
Seriously?
What the heck?
This woman is a staunch advocate for women in politics.
She is fierce.
She worked her way through a huge amount of gender bias.
She is an eloquent and convincing speaker.
She canvassed the streets to get elected making strong connections.
She made an unpopular (with her party), but firm moral stand on a variety of issues.
Her career is amazing.
And yet, here was that word again.
Over the next month or so I listened to other interviews…
With men.
Not one of them put their career success down primarily to luck.
And with women
The word, “luck” (or similar words) kept popping up in their conversations.
This had me wondering…and asking questions…
Are women still unable to truly claim that their hard work, diligence, devotion, professionalism and passion gets them to the top?
Given this “luck thing” it seems that many are definitely still struggling with this.
It is time to claim the whole journey to success and it is never due to simply to luck.
You may have had lucky breaks or been in the right place at the right time, but never forget the journey to get you here and all that has entailed.
Are women somehow softening the journey they have taken and deferring to luck? And why would they do that?
It seems so, and it did appear as if they were toning themselves down, perhaps to be more acceptable in some way.
There is no need to be “acceptable” or “conform to expectations” or be “falsely humble” for anyone.
You probably know that, but it is important to integrate this fully…and live it…so you can claim your space, claim your right to your position, and fully appreciate your accomplishments.
Is there some deeply ingrained issue women have with claiming, not just high positions, but the journey that got us there.
This also seems true given what I was hearing.
It appears many women in high performance careers are claiming luck, like the wave of a magic wand, whisked them from where they were…to where they are now…and very little happened in between.
Perhaps it feels a little like magic when you look back over your career. It can feel surreal to be in a high-performance position and look back to where you started. I have seen this in my clients especially if the journey has been particularly tough, even traumatic in some way.
Perhaps you feel blessed by the help you have had, or the people who supported you, or the opportunities that seemingly arrived out of no-where into your lap.
And that part of the journey needs to be appreciated and honored, but not to the expense of everything else…
At a certain point in a career, it seems it is all too easy for successful women to fall into a “charmed life belief” when speaking about their accomplishments, and so brush lightly over the grittiness, the work, the strategy, the hours, the connections, the education, and the skills they have developed. All the real work that goes on behind the scenes.
It seems that claiming it was luck is more acceptable that the alternative…
That women work hard.
That women are highly professional.
That women are smart.
That women can get where they want on their own merits.
This needs to stop.
All the work you do needs to be acknowledged for your sake, and for the women who come after you, model themselves on you, and look to you as an example.
Your journey, your real journey needs to be celebrated and acknowledged.
And the women and girls that hear your stories…
They need the encouragement and deserve the truth…
The encouragement to keep learning, working and building…
Not waiting for the luck (or the magic wand) to arrive, but instead moving forward taking action to create their own path…knowing that what they do today will impact their future.
Not having unrealistic expectations about what it takes to build a successful career or business, but instead preparing themselves and doing the work needed to and reach their goals and pave the way to their own success.
Luck, in almost all cases, does not play a primary part in achievement.
Sure, the women in these interviews may have been at the right place at the right time or have a lucky moment or turning point, but without their skills, experience, education, and intelligence they would not have been offered opportunities in the first place…
And, in the end, they could not have fulfilled their roles to such a high degree.
They may have met someone who helped them, but would these people have bothered to engage with them if they had not seen potential, professionalism and passion?
Women have a tendency to minimize…
What each of these amazing women did in these interviews was minimize the years of work it took them to achieve their success and hold their positions…
They minimized them with one word.
Luck.
And this never tells the full story.
Luck can be an element in success (or not)
But don’t hand over all the work, all the sacrifices, all the study, time, effort, and choices…and put your success and your accomplishments down to luck.
And in that way minimize your achievements (and who you are).
Take up space.
Claim it all.
Everything.
I suggest you listen to interviews with women and let me know if you come across this weird phenomenon . . . I would like to know…
How often do women use the words luck, lucky, luckiest, break, chance etc. (or minimize the work that got them where they are now) to describe their achievements or their rise to prominence in their profession.
And for you…
Think about how you present yourself and what you say about your success.
Consider if there are places where you minimize your hard work, your skills and your experience.
And remember there is always far more at play than luck.
Claim your whole experience with every fiber of who you are.
Never minimize it.
Celebrate every part of the journey and your success.
You deserve it.
And if you are having trouble holding true to your worth and your value.
If you tend to minimize your hard work, your skills or experience, and you long to step out of these lifelong habits.
I can help.
I am Philippa Rowlands mentor, spiritual advisor and ally to leaders, accomplished entrepreneurs and creators, and courageous souls worldwide.
Let’s talk.
Connect with me HERE
