Equal Pay Day

Is money more important for men??  April 17th is Equal Pay Day.  "This day symbolically marks how far into the year a woman has to work to make what a man made during the prior calendar year" (Soraya Chemaly).  It is crazy that this thought and day is even in people's minds.

Stastics from huffingtonpost.com:

• The median annual earnings for working (full-time) white women is 77 cents to a man's dollar.
• For women of color, the gap and its effects are even greater: African-American women earn 61 cents to the male dollar and Latina women earn 53 cents.
• Controlling for factors like education, experience, job type and more reveals that fully one-quarter to one-half of the gap is attributable to unexplained causes.
• Women now make up more than half of the U.S. workforce -- this gap affects hundreds of millions of people and families.

I don't get why in this day and age people still cannot understand that a woman and man can both work equally as hard and efficient and deserve equal pay!  UGH  I better get working :)

~Adrienne

Stop and smell the roses

Last night we celebrated our 2 year anniversary by going to this wine bar & restuarant.  Even though things have been crazy recently, I try really hard to slow down and enjoy life and be happy for everything I have, including an AMAZING husband.  Within the two years we have been married, we have travelled a TON and had an amazing baby girl!  As you can imagine, there are fewer and fewer romantic dinners with busy work schedules and a 7 month old.  Thanks to my mom, we were able to get away for a few hours to enjoy some peace and quiet...oh and I most AMAZING cosmos!!  haha  I don't get out much anymore.

By the time we got home, chatted with my mom, gave little E a bath, put her to bed and FINALLY sat down, I was asleep (what a boring person I am).  I have to say, my husband has always been a night owl.  I mean who goes for a run at 9pm.  At that time, I have my pj's on and am getting ready for bed.

I did start to think though how easy it is to get wrapped up in a busy, crazy life and stop appreciating every second.  I need to STOP AND SMELL THE ROSES MORE.  This is my new goal. 

~Adrienne xoxo

Why Successful Women Terrify Us

Why are women judged negatively, even by other women, for being successful? There always is a stereotype that people in general need to be a certain way (some would say ruthless) in order to climb the corporate ladder. When a man successfully makes it to the top, we slap him five, but when a woman does, people ask themselves how that happened. Did she wear low cut shirts? Did she act ruthless? Now I know some women may get to the top for the wrong reasons, but I am talking about the genuinely smart women who truly make good leaders.

Forbes.com named the 10 most hated and pervasive stereotypes about powerful women:

• Ice Queen - Think Devil Wears Prada



• Single and Lonely - Chose career over family



• Tough - Ruthless and not caring



• Weak - "Stems from women's greater desire to build a consensus" (Laura Chinchilla)



• Masculine - Must look like a businessman to play the part right



• Conniving - Must have done something to get to the top



• Emotional - Prone to emotional outbursts



• Angry - Sign of "status" for men



• A Token - looked at as a token of diversity instead of balancing out the numbers



• A Cheerleader - Condoscending and not looked at as stong leaders

First of all, these stereotypes all contradict each other. Second, maybe some women possess those traits but that does not make them unsuccessful. Plus, let's be honest...men possess them too!!!

More and more women are proving all these stereotypes wrong but it has been a long road to the point we are at now!!! I am on a committee at my work called WIN (Women Initiatives) so I am hoping that more and more women keep stepping over men as they climb the coporate ladder and prove all stereotypes wrong!

~Adrienne