Claire Bourrasset is the founder of ROUj. A certified coach and speaker, she supports the emergence of more diverse, engaged, and human leadership through workshops and collective programs. Her program "LES FEMMES OUVRENT LA VOIX.E" specifically supports women who want to develop their leadership to shift the lines of their organizations and society towards a more just and sustainable world.
If we look at the role of women today, they are systematically underrepresented in all key leadership roles for building the world of tomorrow. For example, in France today, only three women are at the helm of a CAC40 company, only 17% lead our universities, and women represent only 36% of our members of parliament. In France in 2021, 88% of the funds raised by start-ups were raised by all-male teams...
But this is not the only urgent issue: in the current working world, women are struggling. A study conducted by the Lean In collective in the United States showed that in 2021, 42% of women reported feeling often or almost always completely exhausted. Another study conducted in France by Garance&Moi in 2022 revealed that 57% of women dreamed of quitting their jobs because they were frustrated and bored!
This is also a reality I quickly noticed in the field: there is no shortage of brilliant women who are committed to their careers, but the reality is that after a few years, they fall like flies. They are frustrated by giving so much for so little recognition and feel they are being held back in deploying their potential... and thus in their impact.
What explains the difficulties women face?
1/ They spend their time meeting others' expectations
The first difficulty is that they grew up spending their time meeting other people's expectations. They are often good students who worked hard in school and are used to always getting good grades that reward their hard work.
When they enter the workforce, they face two major problems:
- What worked in school no longer works in the professional world. Doing good work is no longer enough to gain the recognition they deserve.
- By constantly trying to do what they think others expect from them, they burn out, scatter, and miss out on where they could truly make a difference.
2/ They have trouble owning their ambitions
The second difficulty is that they have trouble owning their ambitions. They grew up in a world that socially values behaviors like ambition, risk-taking, and assertiveness in men, and devalues them in women (see the Heidi and Howard study). As a result, they have internalized the idea that they should not take up too much space and should remain as humble as possible.
3/ They have a distorted view of leadership
Finally, they have a limiting, stereotypical, and often even off-putting view of leadership. They see leaders as ultra-charismatic, even authoritarian figures who place themselves above others and never express fear, doubt, or vulnerability. This vision, which often goes against their values, prevents them from envisioning themselves in this role and from allowing their influence to shine as much as it could.
So, how can women take their place?
1/ Accept taking time to think about yourself and your career
Most of the women I’ve met have spent their time doing what others expected of them, without ever asking themselves: But what do I want? What’s important to me? What do I dream of? What gives me the energy to get up in the morning and persevere even when it’s tough?
The answers don’t come out of nowhere. They require taking the time to pause, analyze your feelings, reflect on your history, and sometimes even conduct an inquiry. Working collectively speeds up this process because sometimes, we’re so caught up in the day-to-day that we don’t see the obvious: the red thread in our journey, our unique talents... An outside perspective will often spot it much quicker.
2/ Take action
Once I’m clearer on what I want, how can I start moving forward right now, even imperfectly?
The women I meet often want everything to be perfect before they dare move even a little bit, resulting in them waiting for years and nothing happening. This is also often the result of imposter syndrome whispering to them constantly that they’re not good enough and that they’ll be exposed if they dare to show their real ambitions.
We don’t say it enough, but the feeling of legitimacy is something that is built! It’s the regular action-taking that helps build self-confidence, develop skills, and gradually allows them to claim their place. This can be done by experimenting in a small group, and then testing these new behaviors directly in the field.
For example, within the LES FEMMES OUVRENT LA VOIX.E program, we work on assertiveness through role-playing, which helps women take control of tools for expressing their boundaries, test them in the safety of the group, and then implement them in their daily lives.
3/ Get out of isolation
The women I work with almost always express a deep sense of isolation when facing the challenges they encounter. They feel like it only happens to them, and as a result, they take full responsibility for what they are going through.
To overcome this, I use two things in my programs:
- I allow them to meet other women who are facing the same challenges and create safe spaces where they can share what they are going through, be welcomed with kindness, and connect with the experiences of others.
- I inform them about the systemic barriers to women’s leadership through talks from researchers and consultants on gender equality in the workplace.
These two actions help them understand that the problem doesn’t come from them, that it’s widely shared and constructed by a culture that surpasses them, and that they have also internalized.
My role is then to give them the keys to rebuild their own story, freed from any gender-related injunctions, so that, in the long run, they become leaders who will change the game for everyone.
These women-only spaces are even more valuable because we’ve typically been socialized as women to compare, judge, and compete with each other. Breaking this dynamic is a powerful act, one that also returns collective power to women and allows them to re-empower each other with ambition.
A final piece of advice for committed women who want to take their place?
Invest in yourself—no one else will do it for you!
Of course, you deserve attention, recognition, and support, but if you don’t start by giving it to yourself, why would others?
I know it’s hard to put yourself first, especially when you’ve chosen to dedicate your life to creating a more just and sustainable world, but everything starts there. If I don’t take the time to reflect on myself, to know what I want, and to dare to speak it out, there is very little chance that it will happen.
Yet, we need your voices. We know that in the social economy, sustainable development, social innovation, CSR... women are overrepresented. We want to change the world—so why not truly give ourselves the means to do so?
Take action
👉 More information on LES FEMMES OUVRENT LA VOIX.E
