Women Leadership Summit Women's Work : The Great Juggling Act Kavita Dhar

Centered Leadership Model

Meaning Meaning ‘To love what you do and feel that it matters— how could anything be more fun?’ - Katharine Graham, the first female CEO of a Fortune 500 enterprise (the Washington Post Company)

What is it? Happiness Signature Strengths Purpose Meaning Happiness Signature Strengths Purpose Without meaning, work is a slog between weekends. With meaning, any job can become a calling.

How to find Meaning? Follow your heart Be honest with yourself about what you’re good at and what you enjoy doing. Build these signature strengths into everyday activities at work Look for patterns in jobs that have and haven’t worked out Talk with others about your experiences

What if I cannot follow my calling? Meaning What if I cannot follow my calling? At times, priorities can be different Sometimes a job is better than a calling The key to success is being aware of the current priorities—and making conscious choices about them—in the context of bigger goals, personal or professional.

Managing Energy Managing Energy ‘Flow’—a sense of being so engaged by activities that you don’t notice the passage of time - Mihály Csíkszentmihályi, a founder of positive psychology

What is it? Minimizing depletion Restoration Flow Managing Energy What is it? Minimizing depletion Restoration Flow Work–life balance is a myth—so the only hope women have is to balance their energy flows

Managing Energy How to Manage Energy? Identify what replenishes your energy and what saps it. Incorporate restorative elements into your day. Space out your energy-sapping tasks throughout the day, instead of bundling them all into a single morning or afternoon. Give yourself time during the day to focus without distractions such as blinking lights and buzzing phones. Your productivity will benefit several times over.

Positive Framing Positive Framing No matter how pessimistic you are by nature, you can learn to view situations as optimists do - Martin Seligman, psychologist

Positive Framing What is it? Self-awareness Learned Optimism Moving on

How to be an Optimist? Self awareness – are you a Pessimist? Positive Framing How to be an Optimist? Self awareness – are you a Pessimist? Learn to view situations as optimists do. E.g. A negative experience of a meeting gone badly Limit your thoughts about it to its temporary and specific impact and keep them impersonal. Talk with trusted colleagues about the reasons for the poor meeting and ways to do better next time. Act quickly enough for you to make a specific plan and act on it. Undertake some activity that will restore both your energy and your faith in yourself—perhaps having a hard workout, going out with friends, or spending time with your children.

Connecting Connecting ‘We were supporting each other, and there was power in the many’ - Dame Stella Rimington, MI5 (UK’s domestic intelligence organization)

What is it? Network design Sponsorship Reciprocity Inclusiveness Connecting What is it? Network design Sponsorship Reciprocity Inclusiveness The ability to figure out where to go and to enlist the people and groups necessary to get there.

Connecting How to Connect? Learn that Reciprocity (Give-before-you-get) isn’t bad! Make it personal – show your “human side” Assess your comfort level with the people you know through work, as well as how influential they are professionally. Find a suitable sponsor. Provide and ask for help on a regular basis. Find ways to forge connections through interests outside of work.

Engaging ‘You did the work, so you’ve got to talk about it’ - …

What is it? Voice Ownership Risk taking Adaptability Engaging What is it? Voice Ownership Risk taking Adaptability Create your own luck

How to Engage? Speak up when you have something to say. Engaging How to Engage? Speak up when you have something to say. Accept risk as a part of opportunity. Risks of unexpected changes commonly seem more obvious than the benefits. Follow a systematic approach to self-improvement.

To recap …

Some Suggestions Prioritize tasks Time management Read “The Assertive Woman” by Stanlee Phelps & Nancy Austin

Some Thoughts Women perform 66% of world’s work, earn 10% of world’s income and own 1% of the world’s property Woman is the companion of man, gifted with equal mental capacity To get more women at work, we need more men to do more at home Women start careers in business and other professions with the same level of intelligence, education, and commitment as men, yet comparatively few reach the top echelons.

Thank You & Have a great time