Standing Together by Saint Louis University blogger Abigail

Before I delve into my beliefs on the power of everyone, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, race, age, socioeconomic status, religion, and more, standing together, I would like to note that I understand that not everyone identifies as a man or a woman. This blog makes some generalizations but for the sake of saving my words, I digress.

I’ve always been a guys’ girl. My whole life, it’s been easier for me to be friends with boys than girls and as I’ve gotten older that has become increasingly true. I have found myself with more male friends than female friends and closer friendships at that. I’m not sure why this is, but this sentiment has taught me about the power in a true male-female balance, and has shown me that when men and women work together, great things can happen.

There are generalizations about both men and women that seem to be relatively true. A Psychology Today article entitled “Brain Differences Between Genders” points out several of these differences. The most notable is that it is part of a woman’s nature to be concerned about the feelings of the people around her, due in part to a larger hippocampus, much more so than it is part of a man’s nature. Women are also able to, according to the article, move from task to task more quickly and multitask more effectively than men, whereas men thrive in focusing on one specific task. The combination of specialized thought and lack of concern for others might explain why men are more likely to fight to the top of the corporate ladder than women. However, a world that lacks emotional attachment and deep, contemplative thought is lacking, and that is where we really, really need female leaders. Women know that they can be powerful, incredible leaders. They are aware they possess the skills and insight to move the world forward. Now, we need men to join us.

While the number of female Fortune 500 CEOs is up to 24, the highest it has ever been, 95.2% of these companies are still run by men. That’s 476 men that have a huge global impact that could look to women for a more balanced work force. If those men made the push for equal pay for women, children and families would live in a better world. If these men, and all men, stood beside women, we can make big steps forward in other areas by combining our skills, perspectives and brain-power. A world where men and women stand together instead of against each other is a world where we can make great progress.