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As another woman in tech I read this hesitantly and find I don't agree with the argument she is making here. While my workplace is also dominated with men I hav
by marquis 15y ago
As another woman in tech I read this hesitantly and find I don't agree with the argument she is making here. While my workplace is also dominated with men I have learnt to manage communication differences and stand on the merit of my work. Yes, I consistently get belittled in small ways, mostly by older clients, but if this is what I have to deal with it's a small thing and easily brushed off - and I know it will disappear in time as our demographic loses those who are not used to non-stereotypical people in their environment. But I want to state that I'm a little older than her, and certainly in my 20s I would rail against the hegemony at any chance I got. I made noise and I'm glad I did - in all the arguments and frustration I was able to figure out who I am and where I want to be. She needs to consider herself a pioneer and revel in that - to celebrate her difference and what she can accomplish, and in that different perspective what she brings to her field. If there are those that resist around her, she has a choice to push back harder or move to another environment.
I'd like to comment on her point that her co-workers are myopic in their interests: this is irrelevant to her argument as she could just as easily be a male whose interests lie outside of the status quo. I have seen many different kinds of people work together, and in the right environment acceptance is key. She may find that switching jobs give her a totally new outlook. Let me provide a short example: I am not a gamer and have really no interest. But I am fascinated by the mechanics and functionality of how a massive game such as WoW is created. So if a conversation turns to a gaming topic, I know that I have an opportunity to learn something (how does Blizzard scale, what is their stack/languages etc). There is no topic that cannot be made interesting.
This comment here depressed me however: "Yawn. Then quit, whatever. Stop bitching about it. The only thing I ever hear about from "women in tech" is complaining, and it's boring."
This is completely unfair and unhelpful. She has a complaint, and it is important for her to feel she can express this without fear of personal attack. Comments like this is the reason things don't change, because we fear being called out as 'emotional' or 'unreasonable'. A younger, or less confident person, will take comments like these personally and wonder if their concerns are valid. She has every right to enter the debate on her own terms and we should approach her concerns reasonably and fairly. Losing any brilliant mind because of suppressed expression would be a tragedy.
- themgt 15y agoI'd like to comment on her point that her co-workers are myopic in their interests: this is irrelevant to her argument as she could just as easily be a male whose interests lie outside of the status quo I find this sentence key in a number of ways. Tech firms or departments are often filled with individuals with autistic-spectrum traits - among which are poor social skills, an obsession with details, myopic interest and hyper-rationalistic thought. ASD is 4-1 more prevalent in men than women Her point is not that some of her interests lie outside the status quo, it's that the entirety of her coworkers interests do - they are only interested in or able to connect with each other or her regarding facts and ideas relating to their work, and are seemingly unable to connect that work to any greater meaning or purpose in life
- prodigal_erik 15y agoGreater is a matter of opinion. Many of the fundamental discoveries (perhaps excluding medicine) came from people obsessed with their field as an end in itself rather than a means. Needing "this has a greater purpose in helping other people" outside validation to maintain interest is a bad sign that you have not found your calling, and it's a tendency I think our society indoctrinates women with to their detriment. The need to trade with others does influence what I build, but they aren't the reason I build.
- mturmon 15y agoIt's true, narrow cultural perspectives are an endemic problem in tech, and it can be noticed as a problem by men and women. My favorite touchstone story on this was an earnest conversation my wife, an artist, got into with a physics postdoc at an ivy league school. He wanted to tell her his thoughts on Michelangelo's Sixteenth Chapel -- he repeated it clearly several times in the course of making some kind of point about what art should be. It took some time to understand he meant the Sistine Chapel. Anyone can make a silly mistake. But this one illustrated the combination of "used to being right" self-assurance, with utter cultural ignorance that should disqualify one from offering opinions. ("Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must be silent.") On the other hand, there are a lot of polymaths in tech. Often "thing" stuff -- flying, scuba, rocketry, photography, astronomy, climbing. It can be rewarding to hear about other people's deep understanding of their hobby. At the close of the article, it sounded like the OP wants a big picture goal or mission for her tech work. You have to find one of these. Sometimes education is a way, or a seeking out a unique opportunity to make a difference.