Women are leaving positions in large companies. Why?

Globalization, advances in technology and increased competition have changed the labor market. Women have realized that their needs do not fit into the corporate world. They are looking for a job that brings more satisfaction, combined with family responsibilities and personal interests.

Management professors Lisa Mainiero of Fairfield University and Sherri Sullivan of Bowling Green University have become interested in the phenomenon of female exodus from corporations. They conducted a series of studies and identified four reasons.

1. Conflict between work and personal life

Women work equally with men, but household work is unevenly distributed. The woman takes on the bulk of the responsibilities for raising children, caring for elderly relatives, cleaning and cooking.

• Working women spend 37 hours a week on household chores and raising children, men spend 20 hours.
• 40% of women in high positions in companies believe that their husbands “create” housework more than they help to do it.

Those who believe in the fantasy that you can do everything — build a career, maintain order in the house and be the mother of an outstanding athlete — will be disappointed. At some point, they realize that it is impossible to combine work and non-work roles at the highest level, for this there are not enough hours in the day.

Some leave companies and become full-time moms. And when the kids grow up, they return to the office on a part-time basis, which gives the necessary flexibility — they choose their own schedule and adjust work to family life.

2. Find yourself

The conflict between work and family affects the decision to leave the corporation, but does not explain the whole situation. There are other reasons as well. One of them is the search for yourself and your calling. Some leave when the job is not satisfying.

• 17% of women left the labor market because the work was unsatisfactory or of little value.

Corporations are leaving not only mothers of families, but also unmarried women. They have more freedom to pursue career ambitions, but their job satisfaction is no higher than that of working mothers.

3. Lack of recognition

Many leave when they don’t feel appreciated. Necessary Dreams author Anna Fels researched women’s career ambitions and concluded that a lack of recognition affects a woman’s work. If a woman thinks that she is not appreciated for a good job, then she is more likely to give up her career goal. Such women are looking for new ways for self-realization.

4. Entrepreneurial streak

When career advancement in a corporation is not possible, ambitious women move into entrepreneurship. Lisa Mainiero and Sherry Sullivan identify five types of women entrepreneurs:

• those who have dreamed of owning their own business since childhood;
• those who wanted to become an entrepreneur in adulthood;
• those who inherited the business;
• those who opened a joint business with a spouse;
• those who open many different businesses.

Some women know from childhood that they will have their own business. Others realize entrepreneurial aspirations at a later age. Often this is associated with the emergence of a family. For the married, owning a job is a way to return to the working world on their own terms. For free women, business is an opportunity for self-realization. Most aspiring female entrepreneurs believe that a business will allow them to have more flexibility and control over their lives and return a sense of drive and job satisfaction.

Leave or stay?

If you feel like you’re living someone else’s life and not living up to your potential, try the techniques that Lisa Mainiero and Sherry Sullivan suggest.

Revision of values. Write down on paper the values ​​in life that matter to you. Choose the 5 most important. Compare them with current work. If it allows you to implement priorities, everything is in order. If not, you need a change.

Brainstorm. Think about how you can organize your work to be more fulfilling. There are many different ways to make money. Let the imagination run wild.

A diary. Write down your thoughts and feelings at the end of each day. What happened interesting? What was annoying? When did you feel lonely or happy? After a month, analyze the records and identify patterns: how you spend your time, what desires and dreams visit you, what makes you happy or disappointed. This will start the process of self-discovery.