Stop the rivalry; women need to support one another

It is an incontrovertible fact that women are created with a deep well of inner strength that makes them achieve their goals if they are determined to get it. A woman has so much untapped strength at her disposal, so when such strengths are merged, they create impact and are virtually unstoppable.

It is unfortunate that a great amount of this strength is allowed to lie fallow due to cultural bias and expectations. Traditionally, women are brought up to believe that they are weaker in every sense and they are rivals with other women. Consequently, they grow up with a competitive nature that believes it has to fight for everything. And for centuries, women have fought for everything, including unnecessary issues based on a misconception that many do not even know they have.

We do not need to be rocket scientists to understand this perception is faulty and is doomed to fail. What is the percentage of success over the years? Rather than fight each other, we need to raise each other up because one woman’s success does not hinder that of her peers. There are limitless opportunities for everyone and, sincerely, when we raise each other up and channel our strength through the power of collaboration, we will not only change the equation and turn around the narrative, but we will also become unstoppable as a gender.

There is a need to reverse the stereotype that women don’t support other women. Women support each other but fight like rivals over things unknowingly due to the societal belief that they grew up with. Women will benefit more if they collaborate than when they enter into competition with each other. You do not need to be competitive or catty; it is a misconception, a huge one, that women are genetically or biologically more likely than men to undermine each other.

Women who unknowingly or knowingly pull other women down do so because that is what the environment taught them and also because many were discriminated against and they did not have gender solidarity.

Often, women refuse to support each other when they believe that the issue one of them is involved in is degrading and a disgrace to womanhood, not because they are threatened. Women, unlike men, do not change their convictions just to support one of their own; they hold onto their beliefs and this makes it look like they pull each other down.