Why People Hate Successful Women

Well, thats not entirely true... however...


" Success and Likeability and are positively correlated for men, 

and negatively correlated for women"

This is one of the many both true & insightful quotes from the following Ted Talk with Facebook.com's COO, Sheryl Sandburg. She offers three pieces of critical advice for women who want to be successful. The talk runs right under 15 minutes and is worth every minute of your time to watch it.

Mrs. Sandburg shares striking statistics that will cause both men and women alike to acknowledge that these numbers are hard evidence that there is a problem at hand: Women are not making it to the top of any profession anywhere in the world. 

-Of all the people in Parliment in the world only 13% are women
-In terms of Heads of State there are and only 9 are women
-Top seats in corporate sectors top out at 15%-20% women and haven't changed since 2002
-Within college graduates, men negotiated their salaries over 50% of the time, and women only 7%

Here's the link:

Sheryl Sandberg: Why we have too few women leaders | Video on TED.com

"Women systematically underestimate their abilities"

I think women face a more difficult dilemma with both personal and professional responsibilities. Traditionally it has been the man who goes out and provides for his family while the women takes responsibility for the home. Times have changed. Yet it seems as though women are the ones who have had to make the most adjustments. Somehow we have come to share equal responsibility of providing for the family yet are still expected to maintain the home and care for children. This is one of the many points Sandsburg touches on. "A women now has 2 or 3 jobs, whereas a man only has one"

To add insult to injury earlier this year a study, “The Effect of Relative Income Disparity on Infidelity for Men and Women,” examined 18 to 28 year-old married and cohabitating couples, found that men who earned less than their partner’s income were five times more likely to cheat.


Being a successful women is hard in today's day. Not only because of the glass ceiling that we are constantly trying to break through, the wage gap that only seems to grow, but also because people (both men and women) are intimidated and threatened by successful women.


Sandburg's speech was one of the most inspirational that I have heard. Was this insightful for you?

-S