Lean In Topic Female Rivalry

I am sharing my perspective on the Lean In Topic Female Rivalry because the Lean In Minneapolis/St. Paul chapter has devoted this year to Topics We Don't Like to Talk About. Turns out "Female Rivalry" resonates differently to all of us. Is it generational? Is it only found in the corporate world? I was surprised at the different answers I got when I randomly polled my friends and colleagues, including my husband. Fascinating how the choice of word coupling "female rivalry" held such a widely varied meaning to so many different people. 

While this subject may not be on your radar, it certainly is in the zeitgeist, which is why Lean In and Lean In Together Minneapolis/St. Paul have devoted a month of posts showcasing different perspectives about Female Rivalry.  http://leanintogethermsp.org/

As I wrote my opinion and perspectives for Lean In, I realized I wasn't really helping the situation without offering a realistic solution to people dealing with a rival- so I made a short video with my honest advice. My hope is to encourage and inspire collaboration as our core philosophy of working together, rather than against one another with my short video. 

Whether or not you experience rivalry in any form, it is important to listen to others raise important questions about the subject and learn how you can be part of a community or business environment that actively participates in the opposite of rivalry: support. 

Consider how you subconsciously "compete" with people in your community. Or on social media. Are you surprised by your own answer?

As a Public Speaker and Business Strategist with 28 years of professional experience, I talk about the most effective and successful ways to work with competitive peers or colleagues, whether female or male, coworkers or neighbors. Collaboration is a philosophy, not necessarily simply a strategy. You have to believe you are working together for a common goal whenever you communicate, strategize, delegate or participate in a project or a community. There is enough covert "competition" in our 24/7 media focused world already (in business and in life). We certainly don't need to foster unhealthy competition. 

Let's eliminate "female rivalry" altogether from our personal or professional life. Hopefully my insight and advice will inspire you to take action and shift your perspective about how you view any rival or competitor, male or female. It is a heavy mental and emotional load to compete unnecessarily. Lighten your load by believing we will all benefit from sharing our talents, rather than competing with them. 

We can all thrive in the same world - it is not a zero sum game. There are plenty of pieces of our wonderful pie of life for each of us to have a big, juicy piece of it for ourselves with plenty leftover to share! 

Let's make it a great week!

Kathy