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So many "best of" list that are all men. Dudes, I love you, and this has to stop.
"But we just made a list of the best people," "it wasn't about gender," "We didn't do it on purpose."
Look at the math. Be smarter. The statistical probability DOESN'T WORK.
A thread.
"But we just made a list of the best people," "it wasn't about gender," "We didn't do it on purpose."
Look at the math. Be smarter. The statistical probability DOESN'T WORK.
A thread.
We can't keep having "best of [CATEGORY]" lists that are overwhelmingly male.
This is a classic bias problem that you are either paying attention to or shrugging your shoulders at and shirking responsibility.
You are responsible for this list if you make it.
This is a classic bias problem that you are either paying attention to or shrugging your shoulders at and shirking responsibility.
You are responsible for this list if you make it.
In 2015, Mathematician Greg Martin created a statistical probability analysis that demonstrates how overwhelmingly improbable it is that a speakers’ lineup including only one woman and 19 men could be random.
Lauren Bacon has a conversation with Greg about the probability of coming up with a list like this: "He used statistical probability to disprove the notion that underrepresentation of women on any given speaker’s list “just happens.” "
http://laurenbacon.com/how-likely-is-an-all-male-speakers-list-statistically/
http://laurenbacon.com/how-likely-is-an-all-male-speakers-list-statistically/
In December 2017, @Entrepreneur ran a piece called "The 24 Best Podcasts for Entrepreneurs in 2017."
Yet another “best entrepreneur lists” was disproportionately white and male.
Of the 24 podcasts listed, 22 of them were hosted by men.
Yet another “best entrepreneur lists” was disproportionately white and male.
Of the 24 podcasts listed, 22 of them were hosted by men.
In the lineup published by Entrepreneur, above, the probability of getting only one woman-hosted podcast out of twenty-four total podcasts BY RANDOM CHANCE is approximately a chance of 1 in 700,000.
When you get a result that is so disproportionately skewed in one direction, it’s worth it to ask: where is this pattern coming from and why does it happen so often?
At this point most people excluded from the lists will want to scream when you say "We didn't mean to!" and "We don't know why the list came out like this!"
Your response at this juncture is the best evidence of how you think, and the critical analysis skills you employ.
Your response at this juncture is the best evidence of how you think, and the critical analysis skills you employ.
4 years ago @sm shared a wine analogy explaining why it's the criteria you use to judge that is flawed, not the type of wine itself: https://twitter.com/sm/status/810993281853030400
The first problem here is that the criteria are bad.
The second problem is how defensive folks get when it's pointed out.
The third problem is that we perpetuate it.
The second problem is how defensive folks get when it's pointed out.
The third problem is that we perpetuate it.
Why do articles like this keep happening?
The answer is not “because men are better at podcasting than women,” which, sadly, is an actual response that many people shrug and say when this bias is pointed out.
The answer is not “because men are better at podcasting than women,” which, sadly, is an actual response that many people shrug and say when this bias is pointed out.
Mathematician Mr. Martin points out that reading the comment threads on gender disparity “reveals how truly dismissive and defensive people get when [it] is pointed out.”
As @AprilynneA shares: "I'm so sick of this sh*t" https://twitter.com/AprilynneA/status/1390683591311446025
Why does this keep happening? Implicit bias. Culturally and implicitly people still assume that words like “business,” “entrepreneurship,” and “startup” and other categories only apply to men.
This is why you don’t hear “Startup Podcast for Men” or the “Best Men Entrepreneurs” in a list. “Male” is the invisible, implicit, assumed word. When something is invisible (in this case, “male”), it is the [not] category (“women”) that is considered the exception to the rule.
Please read this next part closely: I am not saying that all men write posts like this because they deliberately want to exclude women. I am saying unless we become aware of embedded bias and actively seek to overcome it, we will continue to make lists like this by default.
And when we do this, let’s be even more clear: it’s not just the WOMEN entrepreneurs and podcasters that miss out. We ALL collectively miss out on opportunity, money, insight, and innovation.
Women represent a growth market more than twice as big as China and India combined (according to @HarvardBiz) and own/operate 25–33% of all private businesses.
Source: https://hbr.org/2013/09/global-rise-of-female-entrepreneurs
Source: https://hbr.org/2013/09/global-rise-of-female-entrepreneurs
When women are in leadership positions, company profits grow. When startup founder teams include women, the startups are more successful and more profitable.
Source: @firstround @BusinessInsider https://www.businessinsider.com/female-founders-outperform-male-peers-2015-7
Source: @firstround @BusinessInsider https://www.businessinsider.com/female-founders-outperform-male-peers-2015-7
Women-owned businesses represent the fastest growing group of entrepreneurs across the country — growing by 74% between 1997 and 2015 — a rate that’s 1.5 times the national average, according to this report from @FortuneMagazine https://fortune.com/2015/06/29/black-women-entrepreneurs/
From @Inc: “Businesses with a woman on the executive team are more likely to have significantly higher valuations at Series A (64% higher), and significantly higher valuations in their last funding round (49% higher).” https://www.inc.com/lisa-calhoun/30-surprising-facts-about-female-founders.html
There are an enormous number of successful women entrepreneurs and womxn-led businesses, podcasts, books. We can’t keep writing articles that ignore them, or we’ll miss out on the inventions, innovations, and wisdom to be learned from these important entrepreneurial voices.
There are entrepreneurs and journalists out there actively working to overcome the subtle (and blatant) sexism that exists in our culture.
You’re either doing something about it, or you’re not.
/End thread.
You’re either doing something about it, or you’re not.
/End thread.
