“We cannot all succeed when half of us are held back.”
Malala Yousafzai
The week starts off with a list robust
Of things to do- she gets cracking, but first
An adequate dose of caffeine she needs
To get her galvanized into action indeed
The list is long, but in her view
It is exciting to have more things to do
It brings out her efficient, no-nonsense way
She means business, her manner conveys
Working without breaks, targets she exceeds
By making secondary her personal needs
In a brutally competitive, male-driven sphere
She has chalked out her strategy, her goals are clear
She arrives early to work, late she leaves
To be on equal footing with the men, she believes
Her industrious and dedication would certainly
Lead her to the top echelons eventually
Whether she was naive to think so
I cannot say, I do not know
But in this world with its warped ways
Where discrimination occurs in myriad ways
Her workaholic tendencies were misconstrued
And given a sexual context, this was so not true!
Credit for her productivity was claimed
By someone more powerful, with a “Mr.” to his name
As you can guess, the opposite gender acted in collusion
To sabotage her chance of landing the coveted promotion
She was angry, hurt, disappointed
She blamed herself until someone pointed
To her that it had nothing to do
With anything except her gender- sad but true
Unfortunately this story is not unique
Women are subject to unfair critique
In their workplace, especially if they are
Good at what they do, they don’t get far
She is learning to fight her battles, learning to say “no”
I hope one day she shall be the CEO!
