Last week, First Lady Michelle Obama gave a speech as part of the #62MillionGirls Initiative. She talked about how critical education is for women. This is absolutely true. In much of the world, girls are denied education or are limited in their education by law and culture.
She’s speaking about a worldwide problem in front of an audience that also has problems with education, but not because of their gender. In fact, in the United States, boys are less likely than girls to finish high school, go to college, and even get doctoral degrees. She warned girls not to spend too much time worrying about boys. This is sound counsel for the junior high school crowd, but terrible advice for the college age group. When you’re 12 or even 16, you can easily make your life much harder than it needs to be by focusing your efforts on the opposite sex.
But, when you’re in college, dating should be a priority if you want a successful career. I realize that seems utterly ridiculous and antithetical to the pursuit of a career. However, a Harvard study found that it’s not the kids that put women behind in their careers, it’s that they put their husband’s career first.
To keep reading, click here: Yes, Dating is Important to Your Career
Sorry that I can’t read the article, INC wants a sign up and it’s impossible to do that on any of my browsers, the sign up information is blacked out.
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If you’re in Chrome, you can right-click on the link and choose “open in incognito window” to access the story. That’s how I get past it.
Suzanne, I just started reading the book Date-onomics, and I think that you should check it out! It addresses how women are outnumbering men in college, competing for a smaller pool of likewise-educated men, and how it is impacting dating culture nationally.
I think what’s missing from the book is what you’re pushing, that women need to be intentional in dating as they are in college and build their career, or they will find themselves in unsuccessful marriages and other predicaments later.
What’s unspoken and implied here is the notion of ‘dating up’. As a general, rule, women refuse to date anyone who doesn’t make as much as they do. So, yes, as is suggested, find that guy with potential (or already wealthy guy) at the Ivy League school and hitch your wagon to that star. Unfortunately, this conflicts with the understandable urge to spend your 20s chasing the “hawwwt!” guys and bad boys after a decade of ignoring those stable guys with potential you met at Harvard.
In general, I think most go this second route- as advocated by Sheryl Sandberg
“When looking for a life partner, my advice to women is date all of them: the bad boys, the cool boys, the commitment-phobic boys, the crazy boys. But do not marry them. The things that make the bad boys sexy do not make them good husbands. When it comes time to settle down, find someone who wants an equal partner. Someone who thinks women should be smart, opinionated and ambitious. Someone who values fairness and expects or, even better, wants to do his share in the home. These men exist and, trust me, over time, nothing is sexier.”