Harvey Weinstein is on everyone’s mind. From the colleagues who benefited from his power and kinda-sorta knew but didn’t say anything, to the women subjected to his unwanted advances and aggressive behavior, to the associates who kept everything hush-hush and paid what needed to be paid to keep things quiet. It’s just business, after all. And the man seemed to be gifted at his job of picking the most promising talent and scripts and creating Oscar and Golden Globe winners without end.
The Ends Justifies the Means
Does it really?
My Facebook feed is a horror show. Not only are many women (and a few men) posting #METOO, but many of them are sharing their stories in excruciating detail.
What does this have to do with supply diversity and balanced leadership training?
Everything. The behavior is an epidemic in our workplaces and far beyond. And I have a pretty good idea why it has perpetuated as long as it has: Power is a mighty aphrodisiac.
Not a Leader, But a Dictator
It’s easy and so very tempting to use my power to make other people do what I want. Especially if I am the kind of leader who believes that only I know best, or think that I got into this position because all my ideas are great. (Just so we’re clear, that is NOT the definition of a leader. That is the definition of a dictator.)
Weinstein shows us that when there is abuse of power or an overinflated sense of self, the fall will be short and hard. Nobody, NOBODY but Woody Allen, a controversial figure in his own right when it comes to women and sex, came to Weinstein’s rescue. The truth is that those who knew couldn’t wait for this day to come—and it’s payback time.
Bad for Business
The business aspects of sexual misconduct can truly cost you your career or your entire business. Weinstein Company is on the block to be sold in a matter of weeks with hopes of salvaging what little is left.
You are reading this because your business is about balance. Your aim is to create balance in opportunities, balance in the way things are distributed, and balance in your organization’s approach to things. Creating this balance is a challenge, and your actions are constantly weighed against your words.
We must resist faltering and going the easy road. We must continue to fight for minorities, for women, for everybody who is not a white male. And if you are a white male reading this, I congratulate and thank you. You are one of a few good men and we need you.
The True Meaning of #METOO
My message to you today is simple.
#METOO stands for women who feel powerless to speak up against what happens at work every single day.
Please help us all put an end to it. Empower women wherever you do business. Your mother, your daughter, your sister, your aunt, and I—we thank you for making a difference.
At her lowest point, Beate Chelette was $135,000 in debt, a single mother, and forced to leave her home. Only 18 months later, she sold her image licensing business to Bill Gates in a multimillion dollar deal. Chelette is a nationally known ‘gender decoder’ who has appeared in over 60 radio shows, respected speaker, career coach, consummate creative entrepreneur, and author of Happy Woman Happy World. Beate is also the founder of The Women’s Code, a unique guide to women leadership and personal and career success that offers a new code of conduct for today’s business, private, and digital worlds. Determined to build a community of women supporting each other, she took her life-changing formula documented it all in a book Brian Tracy calls “an amazing handbook for every woman who wants health, happiness, love and success!”
Through her corporate initiative “Why Acting Like a Girl Is Good For Business” she helps companies with gender diversification training, and to develop and retain women.
If you’d like to book Beate as a speaker on New Leadership Balance or Creative Entrepreneurship for your next event please connect with me.