Propeller was delighted to welcome author and journalist Mary Ann Sieghart to our latest Wallflowers at The Orgy, our event series that puts senior journalists in the spotlight and flips the script to ask them the questions.
Wallflowers at the Orgy is a reference to the late US writer and novelist Nora Ephron who once said: “Working as a journalist is exactly like being the wallflower at the orgy… everyone else is having a marvellous time, laughing merrily, eating, drinking, having sex in the back room, and I am standing on the side taking notes.”
The topic of conversation for this virtual gathering was Mary Ann’s book published in July titled “The Authority Gap: Why women are still taken less seriously than men, and what we can do about it”.
The hour-long discussion highlighted widespread innate biases and psychological conditioning which affect our outlook and treatment of women both in the workplace and wider society. And provided advice on how to tackle these issues.
Our gathering of senior leaders had a chance to discuss the topic and pose questions to Mary Ann, while the event was chaired by Propeller Group Director of Clients and Strategy Rose Bentley.
The impact of a powerful story
There’s an ingrained assumption present in most people that “a man always knows what he’s talking about, unless he proves otherwise. Whereas for women it’s always the other way around.” says Mary Ann, “You are assumed to be the entertainment for the night, rather than the authority in the room.”
She recalled a 1999 encounter between then president of Ireland Mary McAleese and Pope John Paul, where the latter ignored the president’s handshake and went directly to her husband instead, exclaiming: “Would you not prefer to be the president instead of your wife?” While shocking, this incident will be familiar to many women.. It’s a common form of misogyny, and it shows that even women holding society’s highest form of authority, can still be victims of the authority gap.
Falling on deaf ears
“You make this point and nobody notices, and then when a man makes it (and is praised) you think, maybe I wasn’t articulate enough or eloquent enough… No you were just too female!” And there are research studies to prove it. One such study set in a courtroom scenario found that subjects in a group were six times more likely to deliberate on information presented by a man and ignore the same information brought forward by a woman. “Six times, that’s how much harder it is for a woman to influence a group, a group of both women and men! Women resist female influence too.”
Biases we all hold
We all nurture unconscious biases against women that widen the authority gap, and these biases are even present in women. Mary Ann points out that our nurturing from a very early age affirms the false existence of an innate authority men hold over women both in the workplace and consequently wider society.
“We’ve probably seen our fathers going out to work more than our mothers, perhaps earning more, or having more authority at home. We’ve looked at the world around us and seen men disproportionately in charge.”
As a result, associating a man to dominance and authority comes far more naturally to people than the inverse. So while women are not to blame for feeding into societal conditioning, it is the role of both men and women to challenge these conceptions and in turn narrow the authority gap.
One thing to stop doing, one thing to start doing
“Stop mistaking confidence for competence.”
Boys are often brought up and socialised to be more confident than girls. In the workplace this translates to men being perceived as far more competent than their women counterparts. By taking the time to dig deeper and going beyond a person’s word, companies can ensure a fairer work environment.
“Start to think about the conversational time, make sure it’s proportional.”
By ensuring all receive a fair say in meetings and discussions, companies can ensure no team member is left feeling disillusioned and let down regardless of race, creed and gender. Establishing set parameters leaves no room to second guess the motivations behind a person’s interruptions.
You can purchase Mary Ann Sieghart’s book “The Authority Gap:Why women are still taken less seriously than men, and what we can do about it” on the following link: https://www.maryannsieghart.com/the-authority-gap/
You can tune into the full podcast interview here.