Introduction
Know it or not, but women choose an employer for different reasons than men. Doing something beautiful in their work, or how an employer stands in society, is often more important to them than a high salary or a big car. Should you focus more on money, or are ‘soft’ factors becoming more and more valuable?
Read on and I will work out why you should look more at salary than at soft factors. And for those of you who would like to be their own boss anyway, I have my number 1 recommendation for you at the end.
Where did this come from?
One of the striking results of a recent survey was that women are more likely to make salary concessions to work for a sustainable company than men. Sustainability is not the only employer characteristic that is very important for women. We see that women have a different attitude to almost all soft factors than men.
Women who are looking for a job usually have a larger wish list than men. In addition to ambitious motives such as salary, status, and career opportunities, there are also often softer motives, such as flexible hours, date of commencement of employment, and travel time. Within this list, they often give more weight to the softer motifs. So it’s not that they don’t think salary is not that important or don’t want to negotiate about it, other points are just even more important to them.
Happiness at work and safety
The fact that the soft factors weigh more heavily is often primarily aimed at the combination of care and work. That can be as a partner or a mother, but taking care of oneself is also more common among women. Unfortunately very logical, because women also suffer relatively more often from burnout
It is remarkable how many women between the ages of 25 and 35 drop out of a company. It is a major problem in some areas, for example. Here speaking is a feminist lady and founder of a career coaching agency for highly educated women with more than 20 offices. “We are currently investigating this phenomenon ourselves. Women working less or even leaving.
From birth
“We see that this has nothing to do with salary, but with happiness at work. How an organization stands in society is often very important to women. The lack of a mission and not being able to connect the work with a personal goal, are reasons for leaving a company.’ The different view of the world already starts in the cradle, she says. Girls look at a face much longer as babies than boys. Girls are told early on that they are not allowed to cycle home alone in the evening, boys never hear that. Working together is more important for women, also at work. The group provides security.”
Macho behavior
Conditioning plays an important role. She points out that women in western parts of the world are only allowed to
earn and spend money themselves for a very short time. It was not until June 1956, that the Incapacity Act was abolished. Married women were now allowed to work, open a bank account, and travel without the permission of their husbands. “It’s hard to believe, but we women have only been dealing with money, work, and negotiation for half a century. And that shows when we have to stand up for our values.”
Powerful women
Although differences can be explained from psychology and history, she does warn against clichés and catchphrases. As a ‘talent coach for ambitious women with spirit’, she has plenty of clients who are ambitious, who want to make an impact, and who want to be seen – both in salary and in their talents.
She also sees that women want to mean something to the world. ‘Sometimes there is no room for this in their job, they have too little autonomy or nothing is done with their vision. Women are still too often overwhelmed by macho behavior. Then they choose entrepreneurship or another company.’
Gender pay gap
It seems that men pay more attention to their income than women and that the pay gap is not narrowing as a result. “Women consider salaries less important than men. They would rather do something beautiful, something useful. Men often know exactly what their colleagues earn. For men, salary, title, and car are related to status, hierarchy, and influence. More salary means more influence. Women don’t make that link.”
She calls the soft factors certainly one of the causes of the pay gap. “That doesn’t necessarily mean that women have to get tougher, but if a woman starts at a job with too low a salary, she always takes this with her to other jobs. There may be an increase, but it is based on the already too low previous salary.’ Should women first look at the hard factor number one – the salary -? She thinks so. “Women need to see their own worth more so that it increases. Recognize, own and value these, and negotiate from there.”
Playing soccer
If women want to be considered ‘full’ and compete for the main prize, then they have to stick to the rules, according to her. “You can’t go and play football and say, ‘I’ll catch the ball’. You really have to participate, also in salary, to gain influence. Fortunately, this is happening more and more and there are beautiful role models such as Oprah Winfrey, Janice Bryant Howroyd, and Beyonce .’
A preference for soft factors is of course not a bad thing. In particular, altruistic qualities are highly appreciated. And there is a shift underway that could eventually make such factors as important as salary, title, or a lease Tesla. For example, she sees that, partly because of the pandemic, people want to contribute more to a sustainable world.
Sustainable employer
‘There is a major shift of employees – not only women but also men – who are leaving for a sustainable employer. It is important that companies focus on this and move along with the needs of employees. In a world with an increasing demand for meaningful products and services, it is important for everyone to take a look. Now it often remains with beautiful words.’
What better way than to become your own boss?
Becoming your own boss
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Affiliate Marketing
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So ladies, will you dare to take this small step and change your life forever? Let me know through the comment section what you think and I will reply within 24 hours. Thanks for your attention.
Hi there, this is a very interesting post that women pay more attention to soft factors, than to salary. As a mature lady, I know that things have changed a lot over the past twenty odd years, and women have become more assertive in what they want from an employer. But as a mother, I know how important flexibility and compassion in an employer was to me when my children were small.
At then end of the day, it is important to have a work / life balance, and working for yourself, might provide the best of both worlds.
Being a mother and having a job at the same time is not very easy. I agree that being your own boss and making some money on the side and doing so in your own time will be a solution for many of you. The suggested program provides you with the freedom to work whenever you want and doing so from home. The best of two worlds!