Sisterhood of Women
As i write this note, I can’t help but hum the catchy anthem sung by Eurythmics and Aretha Franklin, Sisters Are Doin’ It For Themselves. This song was written 34 years ago, and while women are standing up and rocking in their respective fields and professions, they still face forms of prejudices and gender bias. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Women and men approach things very differently but together they can bring balance and diversity, thus complementing each other well. In some of the women leaders that I admire, they didn’t have to act like men to be taken seriously. Their advice as a leader is to give guidance as well as clear directions and vision to their followers while not hiding their nurturing nature and femininity. Having said that, there’s also another barrier to women achieving or embracing success— themselves. In her book Lean In, Sheryl Sandberg confesses to downplaying her own accomplishments for fear of others not liking her anymore, and it was holding her back. She even found it difficult to accept recognition on being ranked number five in Forbes’ list of 100 of the world’s most powerful women. Why is it that when a man is successful, he is well liked and gets a pat on the back, whereas when a woman takes on the same role, people like her less? This is one of the reasons why women are not n comfortable with their success, even though it’s well earned. As the sisterhood of women, let’s not be snarky and tear down one another, but instead cheer each other on and be happy for our successes. In conjunction with International Women’sw Day on March 8, we haveh put forth a line-up of strong, independentin women starting with our coverco star, Chryseis Tan. We also have activistac Ivy Josiah, businesswoman Puanpu Sri Siew Yong Gnanalingam, nationalnat bowler Shalin Zulkifli, Yen Yen Goh of The Good Co, as well as Natasha Ozeiroze of Prettysuci. We hope you enjoy this women-packed issue! — Elizabeth Soong Managing Editor