Sallie’s Opinion

Damned if You Do, Damned if You Don't

I’m at the “organize old boxes of documents” stage of quarantine.

(For me, it came right after the “make all my mom’s baked goods to evoke the simpler days of my childhood” stage but before the “re-binge-watch ‘Breaking Bad’” stage.)

I found one of my old 360-degree performance reviews, from a job that … didn’t work out so well. I remember receiving the document and paging through it during my performance review meeting.

It said that I was too aggressive — but not assertive enough, and thus I needed to be more aggressive.

I sh*t you not. It sort of felt like an episode of “The Office,” except that it was my career and it wasn’t remotely funny.

We’re seeing a performance review of sorts take place on the national stage right now. And we’re seeing this same old damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t conversation. Here’s how it’s going down this time.

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By the Numbers

Last week, Clorox announced that Linda Rendle would become CEO in September, bringing the number of women CEOs on the Fortune 500 list to an all-time high of 38 ... aka 7.6%.

“There will be a resistance to your ambition. There will be people who say to you, ‘you are out of your lane,’ because they are burdened by only having the capacity to see what has always been instead of what can be. But don’t you let that burden you.”

– Kamala Harris to the Black Girls Lead 2020 virtual conference

A tweet by venture fund innovator Arlan Hamilton, reading: “99% of the people who give me advice about raising and / or running a venture fund have never raised nor run a venture fund.”

What we’re reading

•	“Effective asker” isn’t on many resumes … but it should be, and we should start teaching girls this skill from childhood, says Dr. Marisa Porges. — Fast Company
•	A study looked at gender bias around career within several languages — things like how often “woman” is associated with “family” in a language compared to how often “man” is associated with “business.” Countries with more language bias had fewer women in STEM (science, tech, engineering and math) careers. English is #6 on the list. — Forbes
•	Last weekend, the president signed executive orders and memorandums about unemployment benefits, student loans, stimulus checks, and PPP loans, but it’s still unclear how and when people might get the money. (We’re watching this, and we’ll keep updating as things play out.) — CNET
•	Mothers who want a political career are pushing through stereotypes and running for office in record numbers. But will COVID-19 push them to the sidelines? — The 19th
•	Nia DaCosta will direct “Captain Marvel 2,” making her the first Black woman to direct a Marvel movie. — Vanity Fair
•	Since the pandemic started, 34% of women were asked to change their hair or wear more makeup on work calls, and 27% were asked to “dress more sexy or provocatively.” — Yahoo! News

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What The Elle - You’re Too Aggressive for the Job

Damned if You Do, Damned if You Don't

By the Numbers

“There will be a resistance to your ambition. There will be people who say to you, ‘you are out of your lane,’ because they are burdened by only having the capacity to see what has always been instead of what can be. But don’t you let that burden you.”

What we’re reading

Do more for your money and career.

This week’s newsletter was brought to you from San Francisco, while planning to look through a window at Chanel Miller’s new mural. Forward it to your friends who know the importance of finding your voice.

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