Women bring in a unique blend of empathic leadership, strategic vision and fostering an inclusive workplace where diverse voices are heard and valued and ultimately driving innovation and organisational success. The same could be achieved with supporting family, righteousness, specialisation of the field, collective voice, avoiding unnecessary fights and saving energy. However, the paramount is good physical and mental health, said Justice S Srimathy of the Madras High Court.

“When we devote our time to the profession 24/7, the impact would be on our health. As a judge, we have to work 24/7 and our mobility is limited and the impact on our health is more. We, women ignore the health, symptoms of the health and end up having health issues. Good physical health leads to good mental health,” she said in her address at Level Up! MMA Managers’ Convention 2024 on Saturday.

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Bharatiya Yoga explains the five bodies of consciousness as Annamaya (physical body); Pranamaya (life force); Manonmaya (emotional); Vigyanamaya (wisdom) and Anandamaya (bliss). Maintaining physical and mental health is paramount for any Level Up, she said.

“Rural and urban distinction is there. We have to concentrate to level up; eco-friendly should be the other motto and the latest is narcotics, which is spoiling the entire society. Each one of us has the role to contribute. I am not going to say how to tackle it, but would only say that it should start from the family,” she said.

The first Level Up for any woman would be the family. Law professionals are men dominated and reaching prominence by women is difficult. Women need to put double or triple their efforts to shine, she added.

Nirmala Lakshman, Chairperson, The Hindu Group, in her remarks said despite progress in technology advancement and global connectivity, there has not been much progress on women’s work and appreciation and the value of work. “Women should have the stubbornness, which will take you a long way in persistence and stand your ground to move forward in the work that you do not just at home but also at work places,” she said.

Levelling Up is not just for women but for organisations also. They have to Level Up to look out for the well being of women who work in their offices, whether it is to do with things like sexual harassment or much more certain gender bias that is very much in existence in corporates and offices across the country, she said.

While there is no outward discrimination in terms of the HR policies, sexism often exists in more subtle ways. For instance, there could be a gender bias that could be expressed in conversation or there is a lack of sensitivity in addressing the domestic situation of women, she said. It is important for gender policies for the HR department in offices to recognise how important it is to recast some of these subtle prejudices and work consciously towards overcoming this so that women feel better in the workplace, she added.

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Levelling Up for women also implies a special organisational effort to help upskill women in areas like new technology that will help foster better productivity for companies. It means allowing women in organisations to grow, to support specific issues, to allow them to move beyond their comfort zones and provide them with instruments and tools that they need to progress, he said.

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