A tall story about a short man (and what it has to do with women)

Brace yourself. I’m about to blow your mind. I’ve just learned that Napoleon Bonaparte wasn’t short. This was just a myth created by his enemies to – quite literally – belittle him. He was, in fact, of average height for the time, perhaps even a bit taller. And yet, somehow, it’s become ‘historical fact’ that the iconic French leader was an especially short man.

It should amaze me this myth still exists but, working in the gender equity space, I see similar untrue ‘facts’ bandied about every day.

One example is the myth that setting gender targets means people aren’t promoted based on their personal merits. The truth is quite the opposite.

Aiming to include more women in the workplace or in senior roles is all about merit – in particular, learning to see merit in people that might otherwise get overlooked. Why does this happen? Unconscious bias mostly – which we all have to some degree. Not just around women but around what we perceive as being meritorious to begin with.

By setting gender targets – and learning ways to achieve them – leaders are actually making things fairer. And they’re widening the talent pool from which to draw. It’s a double win.

But, like Napoleon’s true height, this isn’t well known and so the myth remains. As do those around women “choosing” lower paid work or men being more “natural” leaders. I could go on.

Thankfully, there’s a cache of research out there now that can set the record straight. All we have to do is be open to questioning the status quo and we can start to take down some of those tall tales.

Speaking of, did you know that bulls can’t actually see the colour red? 🤯