It has been my experience that with every success, there has also been a barrier (or two or three or fifty) one has to overcome in order to achieve. By achieving a certain status in one’s career, obtaining a degree or raising a family, challenges are inevitable; how one identifies, addresses and deals with those challenges more so, in my opinion, than whether one overcomes the challenges, is what determines success.
In reading previous research on successful, professional African American women, I found both career achievement barriers and success strategies that were identified by in the literature. This article will outline the barriers to success. Next week, I will share success strategies.
Why discuss the barriers? Because sometimes we have to first identify what the obstacles are before we put an achievement plan in place.
Career success barriers could be placed into one of two broad categories: Internal and External Barriers. The External Barriers could be further divided into four sub-categories: Societal, Organizational, Group and Individual/Personal Barriers.
Internal (Psychological) Barriers
Some individuals experience what is known as the fear of success and thereby prevent themselves from achieving their career goals. When negative experiences are the expected outcomes of one’s success, some individuals, subconsciously sabotage their own achievements. Negative experiences could include rejection or alienation from others or the perception (and thereby reality for the individual) that others feel one is less feminine in her role. This often occurs if a woman is taking on a non-traditional role that is usually occupied by men. Overcoming this barrier might require coaching or counseling to help combat self-sabotaging thoughts and behavior.
External Barriers
Societal – Poverty. According to the literature, the biggest barrier African American women have had to overcome has been the economic barrier of poverty and the effects of one’s socioeconomic status on motivation and achievement. This proves also to be a psychological barrier as women who are in adverse conditions often do not even consider the possibility of a successful career. An external person (such as an advocate or counselor) intervening in a woman’s situation might be the first step in getting through this obstacle.
Organizational – Glass Ceiling. Another barrier that proves to be a challenge is the commonly known “glass ceiling” which has been defined as the invisible institutional barrier that prevents women and people of color from advancing in their organization simply because of their gender or race. This barrier has proven to be a challenging but not an insurmountable obstacle as there are many women who can share their stories of their experiences and successes. Overcoming this barrier requires getting more success stories out into the mainstream so that other women can find themselves and their stories imbedded in the stories of others thus, receiving inspiration and motivation to move forward in their careers.
Group – Perceptions of cultural differences. One barrier that is not often talked about is the challenges African American women face with members of other groups. Assumptions about the African American culture, perceptions of cultural differences between African Americans and others all affect how individuals within an organization interact with one another and the attitudes they display. If an African American woman is perceived by a superior of another culture in a negative way, because of her ethnicity, she might miss out on opportunities for advancement. This barrier is difficult to identify and therefore, even more difficult to overcome. One strategy might be to build a network of peers or identify a mentor who can champion and navigate one through what might be difficult situations.
Individual – Commitment to one’s personal or family responsibilities. Finally, balancing personal and family responsibilities and commitments and lack of support from family or friends was also a barrier to success found in the literature for some African American women. Oftentimes, being the sole or primary care-giver forces professional women to make a choice between their families and their careers – particularly if the woman does not have a strong support system. To rise above this obstacle, one might first want to identify what are one’s conflicting priorities and commitments and then look for resources that could help one not have to choose between family and career. If the choice is inevitable, one might consider a plan for how long family or career will take center stage and then develop a plan around that decision.
As stated above, why many of the above barriers are challenging, they are not insurmountable. Often, the support of others such as a counselor, coach, mentor, professional and personal relationships, along with the skill and talent to do the job, are all that a professional woman needs to turn her career goals into reality.
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