Many women who choose professions such as pharmacy carry on extra responsibilities in navigating self-management, home (family) management, and career management.
As the old age cliche indicates, ‘women generally wear a number of caps daily, monthly and throughout life’, just because they are women.
In addition to the basic experience of juggling many acts as a woman, a woman who chooses to add serving in leadership roles adds further stresses and additional caps…all on one head. For some, it could be an insurmountable challenge leading to burnout. For others, it could be attainable and rewarding with careful planning.
Below, I will attempt to list and somewhat explore challenges women face (polled from a small cohort of women pharmacists) and also top tips to help not just get into those leadership roles but also thrive in them, by making a good impact and birthing other leaders.
Challenges
- Leadership is mainly self-taught.
- Being introverted.
- Not speaking out when needed. Deciding to speak for a positive impact is a requirement in leadership.
- Race and being a minority.
- Inability to conquer the balancing act – cooking, cleaning and other home services.
- Lack of mentors, lack of mentoring experience, or reduced access to suitable mentors.
- Lack of opportunities to develop experience, especially if executive roles in large organisations is the goal.
- Lack of role models that can be identified with.
- Fear of failure.
- Pressures of navigating workplace politics.
Top tips
Counting the hidden and obvious costs of embarking on a journey into leadership cannot be overemphasised. Time costs, physical, and psychological energy costs should be pondered, and arrangements should be made concerning childcare if required.
- Finding and understanding your why. This is important to keep you going when the journey gets tough. Moreover, you will also need it to navigate situations when your values get challenged.
- Understanding your preferred leadership style. Everyone has a preferred leadership style. Operating in this would mean putting your authentic self forward and coping better with the pressures of leadership, such as impostor syndrome.
- Understanding the leadership perspectives of the organisations you are involved with. This will help give you a quicker entry into leadership roles. This also includes understanding the drive and culture of the sector or organisation you are aspiring to be a leader in. Culture is a powerful thing. An understanding of it would make your leadership journey smoother and mostly more rewarding.
- Early decision to meet a need. Solution givers rise in leadership. Most people perceive, see, understand, and articulate problems. Fewer people find and offer solutions. Followers look for solutions; leaders navigate the path to solutions.
- Identify opportunities.
- Be your authentic self. The going gets tough even for the sincerest of people who get into leadership roles. Being able to keep your authenticity will serve you right when the accolade of a role ends.
- Be clear on what you bring to the table.
- Hard work. It helps to get the buy-in of family and friends, too. Some leaders call them your ‘kitchen cabinet’.
- Get knowledge of your chosen leadership track.
- Networking.
- Learn and embrace public speaking.
- Be confident.
- Get a mentor.
- Mentor others.
- Be kind to yourself and others. Most leaders acknowledge that empathy helps build a followership. Organisations that reach out to meet the basic needs of employees in an empathic way do motivate them to cause better organisational profitability. Leaders are kind to people to help motivate them. Remember to be kind to yourself, too.
- Have SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely) goals.
- Do a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis of self and career.
Personally, many of the tips listed helped me get on the first rung of the leadership ladder in community and in the pharmacy and healthcare world. Others have helped keep me going.
If I were to say what has helped me most, I would point to having the realisation that Leadership is firstly ‘self-taught’ and ‘finding my why’. The leadership courses that I have had the opportunity to do have helped to build momentum as I got information to sharpen my skills, but I needed to first commit to leadership for anything else to help me. In a bid to guide others, amongst other serving engagements, I set up an initiative called Mic-Ready Institute (delivering a 5-week master class) which caters to helping individuals find their unique voice, conquer their fears, hone their skills and take on small, medium, and large stages to deliver positively impacting speeches. Graduates have themselves gone on to serve successfully in various capacities in community and professional pursuits. To me, leadership is serving and lending my voice to make a positive impact.
I am grateful for the opportunities that have come my way through engaging in rewarding service, with the PDA being a notable example. The experiences gained from such roles have not only contributed to my personal growth but have also enabled me to serve the community and the fields of pharmacy and healthcare effectively. Being part of the PDA has provided me with invaluable insights and has played a rewarding role in my continuing journey on the leadership ladder.
By Lola Dabiri, locum pharmacist, President of the PDA BAME Network, and Welfare & Scotland Lead for the United Kingdom Black Pharmacist Association (UKBPA)
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