#sheplusplus

1. You are uniquely you and your specific ideas and point of view are needed.

Did you know that a lack of women in one famous product lead to thousands of deaths? That’s right, because no women were present on one team, lives were lost. The product? Airbags.Yes the exact airbags that go in every vehicle and are designed to keep passengers and drivers safe in an accident. An all-male automotive engineer team made the first airbags so the dimensions were specifically made to those males on the team. Women and children were not even a thought. Do you think that if there was at least one female engineer on the team, things would’ve been different? I’m going to have to say, probably.

Another reason as to why your unique point of view is needed: feel free to name drop. Mark Zuckerberg reportedly responded to a Facebook post when a grandmother posted on his wall that she tells her granddaughters to “date the nerds” in school because they may just be the next Mark Zuckerberg. His delightful reply? “Even better would be to tell her to be the nerd in school so they can be the next successful inventor!” See, even the inventor of Facebook—the digital entity that changed the face of communication and news dissemination—knows that you are needed in the tech space.

2. There are more tech jobs available than any other industry.

Chances are high that you’re going to want to work, and chances are even higher, that you’re going to have to.  Not only are there currently more jobs in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) than in any other industry, but most of these high-tech jobs are high paying, as well. According to the National Council for Women and Information Technology, there will be around 1.4 million computer specialist job openings expected in the U.S. by 2020. As an added bonus, STEM jobs are among the highest paying fields, in part because of the rising demand.

Let’s recap for a moment; so, with your passion, education and skills you could capture one of the 1.4 million job openings and get paid well for it. Sounds pretty awesome. So, why are you needed though? If you’ve heard of the skills gap, you may know why. There’s going to be a lot of jobs and there aren’t that many folks with the skills to fill those jobs. So, who better to help? Look in the mirror, darling. It’s you.

3. You could be a role model someday “If you can’t see it, you can’t be it,” says Axosoft CEO Lawdan Shojaee. Axosoft, an agile project management software company, is indeed led by a woman. A woman who believes that women can do anything they set their minds too. But, if women can’t see others like them in STEM-related occupations, they can’t see themselves there. That’s why Axosoft created the #ItWasNeverADress campaign which unexpectedly went viral in 2014. The goal is to shift perceptions and assumptions about women through conversations and storytelling. So, “be the change you want to see in the world,” said another powerful leader. (Ok, it was Gandhi, but you already know that). But maybe you didn’t know why. Well, one of the reasons is so others who are like you can join you.

Mentorship can make a huge difference in one’s career. And the good news is that there are a number of organizations that can help you in whatever stage your career is at. But, just remember, organizations need people in order to be successful. Who are those people? They’re people just like you. So, keep going, keep figuring out problems, keep pursuing your dream. Because you, yes you, are needed.