Owning Your Dream Opportunity By Julie Chase

It’s difficult not to get discouraged when reading reports such as the “Women in the Workplace,” by McKinsey&Company and LeanIn.Org—where we see little progress on diversity in the corporate world over the last few years. But let’s zoom out a bit to 20 years ago when I entered the tech world. I remember only seeing 1 or 2 women engineers in any given team. In the past few years, I’ve not only worked with many but have also been fortunate to work with many women leaders.

When I look through a wider lens, I can better see the great progress made and feel more positive. With the influx of women-focused organizations, like Women In Cloud and female-founded companies, I’m more optimistic than ever. I truly believe the next few years will be marked by exponential results.

Even in my own business, at Dream Job Catcher, I’ve noticed a positive shift. I regularly talk to recruiters and over the past few years, there has been a significant increase in women negotiating for higher compensation. One recruiter from a Fortune 500 company says that every time a candidate asks for more, she is able to present a higher package. If they don’t ask, the original offer stays in tact.

More than half of our clients are women. One thing that’s pretty consistent is that they read job descriptions literally—often asking “have I done this exactly?” Whereas, most men read the bulleted lists as “Can I do this?” And the latter is the better way to approach the list—as well as it’s based on other experiences that are parallel to the role.

This is just one of many examples where I help our clients realize their full potential by focusing on their strengths. We work together on establishing the right mindset and overcome limiting beliefs. We also partner to determine your dream opportunity, which I define as an opportunity you love every day—and then create an action plan to make it become a reality. There’s nothing more empowering than taking ownership of your career & life and making it happen!

We’re extremely excited to sponsor the Women In Cloud Summit. 

Please stop by our booth or attend the Career & Life Transitions roundtable.

Credit: Julie Chase, CEO of Dream Job Catcher