I need terrible female engineers | Hacker News Reader

I need terrible female engineers

medium.com

35 pointspragmaonce7 comments

"More than I need to see women who have it all, I need to see women who are simply competent engineers." That's my suggestion for what to say in the title, if it can be said in fewer words. I think it would give the idea better. I like the idea.

For what it's worth, I have met female colleagues who seem to have either of those combinations of qualities, or other combinations. I'm glad that I did. I respect my colleagues. I'm sure I have bias, as I suppose everyone does. I hope that I keep in mind that people aren't always as they seem. And I hope that I don't need to judge people's qualities that are irrelevant in context.

This article is what happens to your mind when you watch mainstream media and believe what they say.

If you believe you are a certain way, you will be treated that way. Change your own perception and you change (your) world.

By focusing on what you dont like, you are living the reality you dont like.

I love all girls in tech by the way. Without them, office would be very boring. Some are pretty, some are cool, some are annoying. Because they are people, and thats what people are.

I'm not sure this is specific to the tech industry. Right or wrong, I think that "be competent at [job] and pretty/sexy/funny/personable" pressure is something a lot of women feel in a lot of jobs. I think a lot of times, that pressure is more imagined, or self-inflicted, than real.

As a not particularly attractive, introvert, female developer who has been rather successful in my career, I don't feel like I've missed out on any opportunities because of those traits.... and if I have, they're probably people I wouldn't want to work with, anyway.

It sounds like she's asking for average people to be role models, but aren't role models supposed to be exemplary? To show us what we can achieve and encourage us towards that?

What I got from this is that we should let a woman either fail or excel based on her own skills and actions, not based on all women's actions. Women have a ton of pressure on them to be great at their jobs, plus be pretty, and fashionable, and geeky, and cool, etc. It's too much. Let each woman be who they are.

The xkcd says it all.

I really enjoyed this post. I hope she keeps writing.

Thank you! I really, really appreciate that. It's emotionally exhausting to respond to all the comments on the article and I think I needed to hear that.

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