Why is it that girls are told they are bossy, but boys are told they have leadership skills.
“We have too few female leaders.” — Sheryl Sandberg, COO, Facebook
I’m all about empowering girls and the new #bashbossy movement is one that I am uber excited to join. Sandberg has started a revolution to encourage girls to be leaders in their communities, and I’m in. #BashBossy. Labels and words matter. Confident girls are often called the other B-word, and it can keep them from reaching their full potential, says Sandberg. Let’s stop telling girls their bossy and start telling them they have leadership skills. Queen Bey, Jennifer Garner, Condoleeza Rice and more have joined the campaign and are using their “girl-power” to squash the other B-word once and for all. No girl should ever be told she’s bossy.
Queen Bey showed up, stood up and spoke up. I’m not bossy. I’m a boss. I’m speaking up too. I’m not bossy, I own my power.
Tell us in the comments section below if you’ve ever been called the other B-word, headstrong, pushy, overbearing, controlling, domineering, or authoritarian, and share this post with every girl and woman you know.
Wow! This certainly hit home. Growing up I was also called “bossy” or a “rebel” because I would always speak up when I saw that I or someone else was being treated unfairly. This is why I feel many girls are afraid to stand up for themselves. It is important to teach girls that its ok to speak up in a respectful way and to be leaders. It also important to show them that this is not a weakness, but rather a strength. I want to also continue to encourage young girls to be the confident, intellectual, and beautiful individuals that God created them to be. This is a wonderful cause, and I most definitely support it!
Shirley, I couldn’t agree with you more. It’s time for girls to show up, speak up and stand up!
I absolutely love the message! I think that the word “bossy” automatically comes with a negative connotation and for young girls who are JUST discovering their voice and their power, this message could be life changing. And yes, I understand some of the hesitation the other girls have voiced about Beyonce being part of this campaign with her resent use of other derogatory words starting with “B” which we can all agree is not a term of endearment for anyone, I understand why they chose her and I think in this case a phrase my grandmother used to say serves a purpose here “eat the MEAT and spit out the bones”, meaning, while we can all debate the “Beyonce issue” it is undeniable that she is without a doubt one of the most powerful female leaders of this day and age and when it comes to the term “a female boss” she certainly fits the mold and while we may not agree on everything about her, her presence in this campaign is going to make it’s reach EVEN LARGER for countless young women who (whether we agree or not) look to her as a role model. I LOVE the message and the presentation of the video! I’m not BOSSY! I’m a BOSS!
Ashley, you’re spot on! For the sake of all girls, let’s focus on the message not the messenger. It’s a powerful one!
This is an amazing message that our young women and little girls need to hear. It is perfectly fine to be assertive and lead. I remember bring called bossy during my early years in life. I recently began to embrace the fact that there is nothing wrong with being ambitious and knowing what you want. Women should be encouraged to be leaders. I cannot wait to see this message take off throughout the nation!
Every girl needs to hear this message. Period. Keep speaking up Jessica!
This is such a wonderful way to help empower girls to be bold enough to take the lead. Women have come such a long way from the times when we were expected to be assistants and sidekicks to men. Now that we can be the boss it is time to make society accept that and to stop labeling us as “bossy”. We need to encourage leadership across all sexes which is key to helping better our world.
Developing more female leaders is good for both men and women. Thanks for sharing your thoughts Kamisha!
Bossy! Now that is one bad B-Word! Thank you for reminding us ladies that it is not unladylike to be assertive. There is a new trending topic on social media: ‘Act like a lady, Think like a boss.’. I think it is fitting! Also, I can not wait until we tackle the other B-Word….
Amaris, that’s a pretty aggressive agenda you have and I love it!
Let me first say that I am completely on board with this movement. I think that it is important for not only small girls, but adult women as well, to realize that your thoughts and actions are not limited to the boundaries that traditional society has set in place. You are WOMAN, hear you ROAR! As a child, my family jokingly referred to me as “Angelica Pickles” from the 90’s cartoon The Rugrats. Angelica was deemed “bossy” towards her male relatives. At a young age, I had developed a mind of my own & was not the easiest person to push around. I was extremely independent and wanted things handled decently and in order. There were several times that I wondered if I “came on too strong”. I would debate expressing how I truly felt, just to ensure I remained in the safe zone. That never seemed to work out very well :). With that being said, let’s bury the b-word! We are determined, goal-oriented, career-driven women who WILL NOT be sit still & be silenced. Thank you, Bey, for using your star power to bring awareness to this issue. Love it!
Ha! Jasmine, I love the way you roll. Hear my roar!
This is great! Influential women today reaching out to young ladies to show them that it is ok to be confident in who you are and to go for what you want. I think that it is awesome, that we have so many women in our society, that are all making positive changes for our future leaders. Having a drive and passion for something, makes you work hard to improve your everyday life and those lives around you. I totally support this movement! Yay! I love it! I’m not bossy, I’m a B.O.S.S.!!! I am a Beautiful, Optimistic, Sophisticated, Sista!
Beautifully stated Nakeia! You’re not bossy, you’re a boss… beautiful, optimistic, sophisticated, sista!
I love this! My initial thought after reading “ban the “B-word” ” was that Beyonce was taking a stance against the negative word used to describe women. However, I was surprised to learn that the “B-word” is actually BOSSY! This is a powerful movement that is being supported by women who truly are the “boss”. No matter what age a woman is, she should know that there is absolutely nothing wrong with being organized, in charge, and outgoing. People use the word bossy to describe someone that they notice is in control and confident. But isn’t that what everyone should aspire to become? If you have no responsibilities, you are lazy. If you try to conquer the world, you’re bossy. ..it seems as though we can’t win for losing :)! Therefore, we should all stay true to ourselves while taking life head on!
Jessica, who rules the world? Girls! Love your feedback.
I think this movement is great! I think the term “bossy” is used by both men and women because they feel intimated by the “bossy” person. People are used to seeing men in high leadership positions, so to see a women in that role, who is fearless and direct, takes some people by surprise. It is 2014! Young girls should know it’s ok to be the boss. If you try, the sky is the limit!
Jasmine, you’re right; it’s 2014 and the sky is the limit! Let’s join together and teach all girls that they can be fearless, bold, take risks and lead.
While I do think that leadership should be encouraged for young females I’m not sure how discouraging being called bossy actually is. Growing up I always heard it used for both females and males. I support the message behind the pr tactics and I understand that it is easier to rally people to “ban bossy” than it is to get people to support young female leadership in the community.
I love this! I could not agree more. With my senior year winding down I have been assigned to work in more group projects than ever before. Currently, I am the only girl in one of my groups of 5 males and have already taken the leadership role. Many have called me bossy but leadership is not a quality that is normally directed towards women and especially women of color! WE should totally ban the word bossy because it is demeaning in a sense. We have a voice so why not use it!
I really enjoyed the points made in this PSA! I’m definitely grateful for all the women a part of this video verbalizing their opinions on this issue. It is common that we tend to limit our thoughts, words and opinions as ladies because we are used to being confined into a box by societies standards instead of identifying how we view ourselves as females. This also translates into other areas such as the workplace. Women tend not to be assertive in asking for higher pay or negotiating the average pay for jobs because some of us think that we will offend our potential employer. But we exude excellence and we are definitely worth more than average and therefore, girls growing up should not be afraid to take on leadership roles. As they grow older, they will not be afraid to break the glass ceiling nor will they place limits on their potential for the world is theirs.
While I do agree with certain words that perpetuate this idea of belittling others specifically females, I do believe that this is only scratching the service. I do respect the women for taking the initiative to encourage females not to limit themselves based on societal norms and societies idea in the way in which females should think or conduct themselves. It is apparent that there is this underlying image of what a “female” is however, we should all take the initiative to define womanhood, femininity for ourselves. If it means to be assertive then so be it. We do not need to be submissive in anyway, rather we should take it upon ourselves to gain leadership positions, to follow our dreams. For an example, it is common for women in the workplace not to ask for higher pay or while negotiating starting pay, ask for the average pay. Some women tend to do this so they do not offend their potential employers however, we need to understand we are worth more than the average, that our opinions and work are valued. By starting at a young age and encouraging young ladies to be confident, capable and critical thinkers who are able to live up to their full potential where they do not need to be defined by what society says a female should be, this will allow young ladies to grow up breaking the glass ceiling and becoming the leaders they wish to be.