by Amy Hou | May 24, 2016 | Trailblazers, Women in the Workplace
As a woman CEO, I am fortunate to meet women who are true trailblazers in paving the way for women leaders.
I was reminded of that recently during a tea I had with Madeleine Albright. As the first woman to enter the Situation Room as Secretary of State, Albright had to navigate not only being the only woman in the room but being the first woman in the room with generals and other men in positions of great power.
During our tea, she told me stories of creating a rule with fellow women ambassadors, which was a very small club of people then as it is now. She said that they agreed to always return each other’s phone calls. When asked by a male ambassador, “Why don’t you return my calls?” she replied, “I will as soon as you replace yourself with a woman.”
Her point was not that she discriminated. She simply made a connection with a group of powerful women very much in the minority, and they agreed to support each other in a world where they did not get the same level of support as their male counterparts. She went on to tell stories about her first meeting and subsequent long term friendship with Geraldine Ferraro, the first woman to run for Vice President in 1984 with candidate Walter Mondale. Albright and Ferraro bonded together over a uniquely feminine moment when Geraldine asked her if she had a half slip she could borrow.
I sat enraptured by Albright’s stories, her incredible intellect and impressive memory. At the end of the tea, I told her how I have always been inspired by her and that she has helped to pave the way for women like me. She responded by saying, “That is what it is all about.”
The idea that our work today can push women forward into greater empowerment and a better, more equal world is what inspires me to write this blog. I will endeavor to help other women advance in their careers until the time comes when women are better represented in positions of power.
by Amy Hou | May 4, 2016 | Press
I was recently interviewed by Lutheran Settlement House for their website.
Their 11th Women of Courage Awards ceremony honors Karen Hudson, who leads the Homeless Health Initiative at CHOP and is an old friend and colleague. CHOP is also one of the ceremony’s sponsors.
Read the full interview here.
And you can read more about LSH’s community services on their website.
Established in 1902, Lutheran Settlement House (LSH) is a non-profit, community-based organization committed to serving children, adults, and families living in Philadelphia.
by Amy Hou | May 2, 2016 | Leadership, Leading Teams, Mentoring, Professional Growth, Starting Out
Over the past month, I have spoken to three people about their future career options. Each was seeking career advancement and an executive title. In each case, I told them that chasing a title is not actually the best way to advance. Of course, that seems easy for me to say with the title of President and CEO. But hear me out…
When I probed about their interest in title progression, I heard them make comments such as, “I want to have credibility and I want a seat at the table.” I continue to hear this from others that I have mentored over the years. They hold the misconception, as many do, that a title will buy them leadership credibility and followership. But the title is not the ticket to leadership. There are other qualities that shape a leader and that, most importantly, generate followership.
One of those qualities is possessing influencing skills. These are skills which help you understand how influence works in your organization and how you can use that influence to better carry out your leadership goals.
More than a title, aspiring and current leaders need to understand that gaining followership from influencing people is critical to success. So, what does that look like? How does one gain influence? First, one must identify the stakeholders. These are the people that are impacted by a certain decision. Once you’ve identified them, spend time with them. Share your viewpoint on a situation and ask them to identify others that may help you to lead in a certain direction.
An effective leader does not say “Do this!” and expect it to be automatically done. An effective leader creates a map of who needs to be involved, who will be impacted, and who is in a position to help me lead.
Even with the title of President and CEO, I use my influencing skills to lead far more than my title. It is with influencing skills that one actually get things done.
by Amy Hou | Apr 22, 2016 | Confidence, Leadership, Professional Growth, Skills, Women in the Workplace
A recent article in the Philadelphia Business Journal offers “2 ways women can develop their leadership presence.”
Want the thumbnail? 1) Tout your accomplishments, and 2) use technical/numerical terms to discuss the impact of your work.
Read the article, then re-visit my thoughts on how to establish your executive presence here.
by Amy Hou | Apr 20, 2016 | Motherhood, Work-Family Balance
Anyone in a dual career partnership knows how important “dividing the labor” at home truly is. This is often a topic of discussion with my colleagues and friends when we address the demands of our jobs and how to find our balance between work life and home life.
Inevitably, someone raises the issue of unequal division of labor for household duties such as grocery shopping, cooking and childcare. In my experience, it is common that the woman in the partnership is the person assuming the lion’s share of these domestic responsibilities. (This is not always the case for all families, but it is for most of society.)
Last fall, I was at a dinner meeting, and afterwards, I sat with a group of women over a glass of wine. One of them, my colleague, mentioned that she has been feeling very overwhelmed with two children in elementary school and a high-powered job. Like many mothers, she found herself absorbing the role of overseeing and performing most of the childcare and organization of the household. She knew that her husband wanted to help but didn’t know what to do in order to be helpful.
I told her about my experience coming home from work one night after a long day and finding my husband, a busy physician and very supportive partner, sitting at the island sipping a glass of wine and reading the newspaper. When I entered the kitchen, he looked up and asked what we would be doing for dinner. Right then, I decided that I, like many spouses, had created a situation of learned helplessness. I had gotten into the bad habit of taking on too much by myself, removing most of the responsibility to divide household duties from my very smart and capable husband.
I also told my women colleagues about a pre-prepared delivery meal service that provides fresh ingredients and step-by-step instructions on how to prepare the meal, something I’d learned about from a group of young women physicians and mothers at CHOP. I sent my friend a free meal as a trial. A month later, she told me that the meal service had changed her life. Her husband was able to prepare the meals, gain some cooking experience and, most importantly, relieve her of the burden of cooking fresh meals for the family three nights a week.
It is time for women to shift their own understanding of housework and childcare as a woman’s obligation to the obligation of both partners. Learned helplessness is not a matter of having a partner who doesn’t want to help. It’s about letting go of the ingrained expectations we all carry, so that the health and nutrition and organization of our families are in both partners’ capable hands.
