A long-term goal of mine has become somewhat of a credo for my life. My goal is "to become unremarkable". Instead of being a rarity or "token" in the business I'm in, stories like mine will become blasé. The new norm.

In my world, the issues I hear most about are income inequality (>30% gap across all tenures in 2014 (i)) and a lack of women in board positions (women make up just 21.6% of Financial Post 500 members (ii)).

I believe the funnel or "pipeline" of women in executive or decision-making positions is directly proportional to the number quoted in the boardroom disparity statistic above. Without strengthening the funnel, you are going to end up artificially increasing the number of women on boards, creating disharmony and contempt when the women fail to achieve the expected result. Yes, women think differently, bringing the perspective of new and crucial angles (and this is wonderful) but there are skill sets that are prerequisite for corporate governance that cannot be ignored. Focusing on quantity rather than quality does nothing but fuel the fire of the resistant holders of power. Is this harsh? Probably. But it's important. It serves nobody when a more qualified candidate is passed up in the interest of check marks in boxes or mandated metrics. I still firmly believe in the "best person for the position" approach. However connected I may seem to this issue, I am simply passionate about ensuring the number of female options available for the positions increases over time, and that in whatever way possible I am helping encourage others to put their hands up instead of staying on the fringe.

A concept called Moral Licensing is well-described by Malcolm Gladwell in "The Lady Vanishes" podcast episode of his Revisionist History series. The argument is made that moral licensing prevents progress and tolerance. I couldn't agree more. Gladwell begins with the question, "what happens to those first through the door?" The "door-breakers" face incredible discrimination and rarely does their work produce the kind of enduring effect of improving the landscape of opportunity for the women that come next. The examples can be seen through the ages; the effect is repetitive and deeply engrained. A woman breaks boundaries, pushes a door open, and it slams firmly shut behind her. Because it shows up so often that "door breakers" are so rarely accepted (much to the contrary, they are often hated) it begs the question of "how will opening a door be written into the history record? Will it remain open or will it be closed forever?" I hope that my desire to become unremarkable will enhance the former.

The industries occupied by Boys Clubs have changed over time. Art, fashion, government, banking, medicine, finance, energy. I operate in what is likely considered the last standing pillar to the "good old days", and quite frankly, I love it. I love the rough and tumble world of construction, of seeing things built and produced. Maybe I have an engrained desire to carry the torch for a third generation of women with this attitude of "Why the hell not?". Despite growing up with the sort of mother and grandmother that I have, I am not fooled into thinking we will solve equality issues in one generation. So, maybe I am fool, banging my head against the wall. Ask me on different days and you might get different answers depending on who I've had to deal with that week. [Shout out to my lovely, no-nonsense friend who runs a very large construction company and holds an annual luncheon for like-minded women in the Petroleum club wine cellar (the last room women were prohibited from entering). There are too few of us at that table in the cellar, and we know it, but things are slowly improving.]

The businessmen, mentors and champions (of my career) I have had the privilege of knowing have incredibly progressive and tolerant mindsets, without which I would never be where I am today. From the inception of my career in O&G about a decade ago, whether consciously or not, I avoided the bad energy and overly old-school thinkers, and made damn sure I aligned myself with the exact opposite. I'm immersed in a biography about Gabrielle Chanel right now and wow, I have to say (hopefully without seeming like I'm undeservingly comparing myself to such a mogul) her path has a lot of similarities with my own in how she sought out the right kind of champions to turn her vision to reality. Her early business in straw hats, which was the foundation of her popularity and acceptance in couture society, was funded and encouraged by the wealthy socialite Boy Capel. His mindset was very different than his aristocratic peers, and he would later write compellingly of the sexism inherent in society marriages. Quite publicly he persuaded high-ranking politicians of his belief in finding a way to better capitalize on the under-utilized talents and abilities of women. Similarly, I have the incredible joy of having a "career champion" and friend who, at the drop of a hat, would fund my business dreams and pour all his many (powerful) connections on the table without hesitation, with an unwavering belief that I would make the vision a success. I do not believe whatsoever that women need to "blaze a trail" by firmly and resolutely turning away the financial or social support of men (the business equivalent to a women on a date who barks, "I can open the door myself, thank you very much"). To accept the right kind of help does not water down the outcome. I am unabashedly grateful for every opportunity directed my way by the many successful men who have been part of my life.

Roll Call by Elizabeth Thompson, an artist whose collection now hangs in The Royal Academy but was rejected amongst the very male-dominated art world of the early 1900's.

"Self Portrait with a Rifle" by Nasta Rojc now displayed in the Art Society Gallery.

Self Portrait, along with the story of the artist, speaks to me. Women artists like Nasta Rojc were rare in Zagreb, as elsewhere in Europe. They were treated with condescension and outright mockery. A male-dominated society denied them admission to the Academy and to the state-sponsored art world. Women looked to Vienna, the imperial city, with longing. Role models like Tina Blau lived there, and the School of Applied Arts and the School for Women and Girls opened avenues for starting a professional career. All of these women (Rajc, Blau, Raskaj, Krizmanic) completed their studies in Vienna, then going on to develop the impulses received there back in Zagreb. Their names, however were soon forgotten.

The goal of becoming "unremarkable" doesn't make me a martyr. I would never knowingly put myself in that category. I have to quietly admit that I enjoy every second of my work life and what I do. The shit parts are only shit for a short time, and after that they become a deep well of strength and resolve. If, after my life, someone discovers this post I hope they find the pipeline construction landscape more "equally distributed" than it was in 2018. I will have achieved my goal, if so.

Sources

(i) Statistics Canada, CANSIM Table 206-0053 www5.statcan.gc.ca/cansim/a26?lang=eng&retrLang=eng&id=2060053&pattern=206*&tabMode=dataTable&srchLan=-1&p1=1&p2=50

(ii) Canadian Board Diversity Council Annual Report, 2016.