This article is written by Daniella Diniz, Associate Director at the University of Pennsylvania’s Masters of Behavioral and Decision Sciences and Architect of the Columbia Global Centers Women Leadership Network in Brazil

I have had the privilege of working in higher education for over 15 years. Establishing and maintaining bridges of dialogue between academia, civil society and government has defined the most important part of my professional career, while combining my two main areas of expertise: connecting people and turning ideas into action.

About three years ago, working on a series of projects focusing on improving the public sector in Brazil while representing Columbia University in the country, I came across a disturbing image: the cabinet of the then recently sworn in president Michel Temer.

The image spoke for itself — a room full of men in suits — but it wasn’t a surprise. A survey released that same year reported women occupied only 21.8% of the top leadership positions (known as DAS-6 in the Brazilian public service hierarchy, which includes government agencies and cabinets), although the overall representation of women in the public service revolved around 43%.

In response to this sorry state of affairs, the Women Leadership Network in Brazil was created. At the time our goal was threefold: create a loop of mentorship in the public sector, connect women at the top with mid-senior career managers who aspire to reach the top; provide educational tools to empower women while enhancing their confidence to advance in their careers, and; sustain a growing network of women advocates renewed yearly by cohorts of 20 women fellows.

This was the first program in the country aiming at female leadership in the public service that had mentorship at its core. Stakeholders (sponsors and partners in the public sector in Brazil) saw this as an opportunity to take an important step towards equity while pushing for more efficiency in the public service, while the university saw in our initiative another platform to connect the wealth of knowledge and resources of an Ivy League with policymakers in the region.

And while I had the pleasure of designing and creating the program, this project was only possible with the effort of the Rio de Janeiro team of Columbia Global Centers that to this day continue the important work. In this process, I learned a few lessons from coaching and mentoring Brazilian women leaders in the public service that I would like to share hoping other women feel empowered and inspired.

First disclaimer: leadership and advocacy are two different things

The first advice women get in any coaching or mentoring session often has to do with awareness and confidence: “get to know yourself and harness your talents” is the basic gist of countless self-help books and TED talks. The focus on awareness speaks directly to a complex web of insecurities that women have historically inherited and the self-doubt and risk aversion that have been circumscribed to their cultural and political circles.

Generationally, we have seen more awareness and mainstreaming of gender equality, but the fact is that the recognition of historical inequalities has not necessarily translated into change.

Meanwhile, women leadership has been a catch phrase that has echoed to a number of women to push for more representation in cabinets, boards and higher circles of power.

We operate in the real world, so critical thinking and self knowledge are a must: but what comes next?

The ambition for women to make a difference does have an impact in the way women are seen and can be inspiring for change in women’s rights, but advocacy and leadership do not necessarily line up neatly. A lot of women who have reached the top (especially from the previous generations) have never felt the urge to give back, promote gender rights, mentor or coach the next generation.

While leadership attains to power, connected with the willingness to promote change, gender advocacy, on the other hand, is a sustained movement to lobby for more rights and more gender equality. It has been the soft power of women’s alliances that has become the platform for many of those who push for change and more representation in a concerted effort. Policy change, from a gender advocacy perspective, has been tightly connected with the work of networks, intersectional collaborations and progressive agendas that are carried by leaders and a larger group of people in order to advance careers and rights in a myriad of ways.

Tip 1: Awareness with pragmatism

When I coach women who aspire to rise to the top, one of the first things I highlight is self awareness. It is a fundamental skill, and it entails a critical view of the world (and its constraints, biases and limitations), as well as an understanding of your own responsibilities and accountability in the process. We operate in the real world, so critical thinking and self knowledge are a must: but what comes next?

When it comes to negotiating on your behalf, acknowledging the evils of the world is as important as proving you have what it takes to lead. So my first advice is: focus on your proposition. Recognise your talents and harness your skills — and limitations — and be prepared to pitch on your behalf. When confronting a promotion, women should focus on the undeniable fact that they are the person best equipped to take that position.

It takes a village, as they say, and that village does not move in the right direction without proper guidance

This means laying out plans, outlining how your personal trajectory has prepared you for this moment, and how you intend to tackle it. Gender representation should not be the single goal of a promotion of a woman, but a simple recognition of her achievement and potential. So, do not be shy when articulating your accomplishments, your competency and advantages in a propositional way: focus on what you have done and what will do, and how you plan on executing things to a higher standard, drawing your ideas in a visual way. Avoid the “I deserve this because I am a woman” and focus on the exclusive qualities you own.

There is a perverse trap in the new slogan “pro-diversity”. From an advocacy perspective, women should be particularly careful with figurative promotions that often turn their drive to leadership in government into the diversity “token”, where cabinets fill positions with no actual power to make governments look more gender balanced. If you work in government and you’re committed to moving the needle, you have to make sure you have the buy-in to carry out your plans and build structure and alliances.

Vision is as important as influence and execution power in the public sector. But do not throw out the baby with the bath-water! If you sense your promotion is a recognition of your merits, but not necessarily an improvement towards the change you want to create, then focus on the alliances, and strategies you will have access to by stepping a few steps higher in the ladder. In other words, look for your networks.

Tip 2: The power of networks

The second advice goes hand in hand with the tactical standpoint suggested before: get your network in place. It takes a village, as they say, and that village does not move in the right direction without proper guidance.

Advocacy and change are like an engine that requires constant movement and negotiation with different agents. And executing policies require a lot of buy in, persistence and persuasion. Alliances help women combat the well-known biases that go against them, for instance, that assertiveness in men is seen as a plus, but the same drive in women is seen as abrasive.

Many women, maybe because of their own insecurities or because they feel they are still at the beginning of their journey, move on with their careers thinking they are only qualified to mentor once they reach the top

So the more people — men and women — you can cultivate good positive relationships with, the easier it will be to mobilise efforts towards change or enhancement of policies. In government, pragmatism is a brutal but necessary talent, and charisma is a risky business that can help you build bridges while making you confront your own values. But it does pay off.

Do not be scared, especially if politics gets in the way. In public offices, the political nature of jobs play an enormous role in empowering or disempowering individuals, branches and projects. And often women become averse to being “political” as they can see this as a threat to the actual change that they want to promote or their values.

They can be seen as incredibly talented policy “technicians”, adding to the technocracy, but not the leaders. Expanding your network or “casting a wider net” can be a powerful way to enhance your outreach. Your working relationships do not need to be purely transactional but they need to be carefully crafted: the more bridges you build, the farthest you can go with your village.

Tip 3: We give while we take

My third and final piece of advice speaks to the cycle of giving and taking that mentoring in the public sector should embody.

Advocacy is a permanent, active role woman have to use all their tools to promote their values in an inclusive manner, but it certainly includes “giving” as much as it can imply “taking”. Many women, maybe because of their own insecurities or because they feel they are still at the beginning of their journey, move on with their careers thinking they are only qualified to mentor once they reach the top.

Often, women with the highest level of education and in mid- to senior positions still consider themselves “learners”. And while they enjoy group conversations and the abundance of events to extend their network, they sometimes underestimate their own potential to influence and exchange knowledge with a younger employee, or even a peer.

In other words, you do not need to be at the top of the hierarchy to mentor. Becoming a mentor makes you even stronger and more prepared for your own challenges. Fighting for gender equality in government makes you responsible for carrying the torch to the next generation, building blocks of solidarity and exchanging with the community you build. So do not be afraid to see yourself in that position, and if you hear someone calling you their “mentor”, feel proud of what you have achieved.

It does actually mean you are becoming part of the circle of women’s empowerment. — Daniella Diniz

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(Picture credit: Nappy)