The finance world is all about financial planning, making investment decisions, analyzing the performance between different companies and markets, and precisely communicating strategic changes. As much as I’m interested in working with a variety of markets, utilizing my passion for problem-solving and mathematics, finance holds a profound meaning to me than just numbers. To me, finance means breaking the barriers and stigmas held against women.
Much of my inspiration began by dissecting the masculinity core values between the American and Hispanic culture.
The machismo culture refers to the presence of males controlling women, and it has influenced how women are represented in society and their potential. Many generations of women have been forced to suffer harmful masculinity as a result of machismo. In other words, Hispanic women are destined to be the family’s homemaker from the moment they are born. If a man took on stereotypical female gender duties like parenting, cooking, or cleaning, he would be ridiculed. These attitudes cause innumerable women who want to work outside the home to be limited to a position they don’t particularly enjoy, despite the fact that they are often persuaded that this is the only area where they can give value. Women need the opportunity to be more than just homemakers without being constrained by traditional expectations. However, the majority of Hispanic women are taught where they fit into the macho ideology at an early age by learning the importance of household tasks and domestic work in which only they are required to participate.
Similarly, despite the growing number of feminists, America is still considered a patriarchal society. Biological factors such as hormonal differences and differences in brain structure are a major part of America’s seemingly inability to break the patriarchal chain. Men still dominate job fields such as engineering, computer science and business. Although the share of women in the workforce has increased, the gender base of work is relatively high. Women are still mostly in “pink-collar jobs” that are paid for by men.
In the business industry, specifically finance, female representation remains to be one of the most underutilized business resources. For decades, finance has been an industry that’s been consistently valuing and acknowledging the work done by middle-aged or older men. It’s not only about better compensation when it comes to including women in the workplace. It’s about having equal access to opportunities and being regarded as a decision-maker in the room. To achieve gender equality, we must both empower ourselves and others. Women must commit to empowering, mentoring, and sponsoring each other, while men must become allies who support changes in the workplace atmosphere.
Sources:
https://sites.uab.edu/humanrights/tag/pink-collar-jobs/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5102330/
https://www.theatlantic.com/sexes/archive/2012/11/america-is-still-a-patriarchy/265428/