A few ladies have recently asked me if I had heard about “Pink Tax”. I plan on doing research and full post of my findings this weekend, but am curious to hear how many people have heard of this concept before?
Month: July 2015
Interview tips!
I work in an industry where I interview A LOT of people. I am constantly speaking with candidates for both entry level and Management positions. It never ceases to amaze me the amount of basics that people miss during application and hiring process. For those of you ladies out there looking for a new opportunity I thought I would share a few helpful hints that can go along way and set you apart from your competition. Even though these might seem basic, you would be surprised at the difference they make!
1) Double, Triple, Quadruple check your resume/cover letter/application– misspellings, grammatical errors, old cover letters with other companies names still on them, in correct dates, formatting, you name it, people will catch this! Your application materials should be the BEST presentation of your work thus far, as it is all we know about you. Have others proofread and look through them… but please make sure they are flawless!
2) Do your homework– take a little bit of time and look at the company website. Find out a few things about them. Prepare a question or two that are specific to that company and their mission, values, etc… In this day and age it is unacceptable to enter an interview without a basic knowledge or understanding of what you are interviewing for.
3) Come prepared– Dress the part, it is always better to over dress than underdress. If you are standing in the mirror thinking, “should I wear this?”. Don’t wear it. Bring a printed copy of your resume, cover letter, and a notepad to write down a few notes.
4) Starfish– As you may remember from a few of my earlier posts, body language is everything. You want to walk in with confidence and remain confident in your tone and presentation. Take a minute before you enter the interview, in the bathroom is probably best, and make yourself look like someone running across a finish line. Occupy as much space as possible, and starfish your arms and legs out wide. Just this small pre interview tactic will get the endorphins flowing and make you feel more powerful and confident.
5) Body Language– When you walk into the interview, stand tall, shake their hand firmly, look them in the eye… there is nothing better or more powerful than a strong first impression.
6) During the interview– Present yourself and your work history in a positive light. Don’t spend time talking about places you didn’t like working or problems you had. Be prepared to tell your professional story well, why you are ready for the job, and what the strengths are that you bring to the table.
7)Questions– Bring a couple of questions (no less than 2, no more than 5) to ask your interviewers. A question or two should include a few specific details you have learned about the company to show them you have done your homework.
8) Nail your pitch– At the close of the interview I am always super impressed when someone can give me a 1-2 minute pitch summing up their experience and why they are the best caindadte for the job. I don’t ask for this but it is something that I am pleasantly surprised when someone delivers it. Practice your pitch, have it down, and make sure you make time for this before the interview concludes.
9) Always send a “Thank You”– This is missed more than anything else. Thank your interviewers for their time. Send an email, mail a card, or hand deliver a note to the office, but be courteous and say thanks.
Hope these help any of you out there looking for that next opportunity!
Take charge this week!
Women’s Rights- how far we’ve come but not long ago
Add some Feminism to your Facebook Feed
While I enjoy seeing pictures and updates from people I love. I also enjoy Facebook for the articles and updates I receive from some of my favorite feminist websites. I thought I would list a few for those of you looking to diversify your Facebook feeds 🙂
Support “A Mighty Girl”
C and I had so much fun at the library this morning. We played and looked at tons of books. I had forgotten just how many children’s books are out there… I am delaying “Gender in our Library: Part II” a couple of weeks because I would like to find a larger selection of books to report back on. We found a few great ones but an hour was about all we could do… so more to come…
In the meantime I wanted to share a lovely website called http://www.amightygirl.com. They do a wonderful job of promoting toys, books and movies for children and girls that are a bit more gender balanced. In short they will save me from visiting the pink and action figures aisles at Target when shopping for gifts. Their tagline is “The world’s largest collection of books, toys and movies for smart, confident, and courageous girls.” Happy shopping!
Abby Whelan on Feminism
Do I have any other fellow Scandal lovers out there? I am continually impressed by this show and the way in which Shonda Rhimes addresses social and political issues in such a captivating way .
One of my all time favorite monologues regarding the double standards of females in power is below… enjoy!
For those of you who don’t watch… a quick recap. Abby is the White House Press Secretary. Her boyfriend and ex-boyfriend have both been caught up in a scandal in which they are linked as past partners to a woman who is about to publish an expose on the various sexual escapades she has had with several high profile D.C. men. Abby decides that she will need to resign her position based on her history with these two men. When her current boyfriend seems confused by Abby’s decision to resign she explains to him the double standards that she is judged upon.
Gender Roles in our Library
I LOVE LOVE LOVE children’s books. Some of my favorite memories growing up include listening to stories before I went to bed, and reading books aloud to my Mom and Sister on road trips. When I was pregnant I could barely wait to start a library of our own and pass on my love of stories and children’s books to my son.
I began reading to C from the day he was born. We would sit in front of the fire, in his room, or on the couch looking at pictures and starting to formulate words and stories. Now we have days where it seems that he would be perfectly content to spend the entire day on my lap reading his books.
Recently I started to notice how many representations there are of mothers and their children in his books. As we read stories together I have become more and more aware of just how many books are about Moms and how frequently a 2nd parent is left out.
This got me thinking… so… tonight we pulled down all of his books. I wanted to look and see the percentage of mother figures that there are in his books as compared to father figures, or entire family units.
- Total # of children’s books we own: 77
- Total # of books that include a parent or family unit: 31
- Total # that represent only the Mother/Child relationship: 22 (71%)
- Total # that represent another parent or the entire family: 9 (29%)
While it wasn’t surprising to me that 71% of our stories, with some form of parental representation, are about the mother, I find myself wanting more diversity in our library.
I think that the maternal relationship is an amazing thing to celebrate and can attest to the beautiful bond that exists between a mother and her child. However I have also been so touched by the interactions that I observe between my spouse and our son. Seeing the relationship that they have is beautiful and I wish that we had more books that equally celebrated the strength and power of that bond.
When I think about gender equality, it is important to look at all representations of gender on both a macro and micro scale. Something as simple as the stories we read to our children can make an impact on the roles that they will one day feel the need to fulfill. I hope that we can diversify the books we share with our kids and find ways to show them, in the everyday stories we tell, many different representations of parental relationships and families. Stories in which fathers can be nurturers and deep and meaningful bonds can exist between both parents and their children.
Moving forward, I plan to be more discerning about the books I buy and authors I support. I am also eager to have an excuse this weekend head to the bookstore to see what I can find to diversify our reading material.
Mamathefeminist is branching out
Excited to announce that mamathefeminist officially has a few social media accounts:
- Email: mamathefeminist@gmail.com
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/mamathefeminist
- Instagram: mamathefeminist
Please follow and enjoy updates, teasers, and posts!
mamathefeminist 