In one of my favorite TV shows of all time Firefly Wash is being intensely interrogated, and the interrogator asks Wash about his relationship with his wife Zoe, Wash responds rhetorically with a look of pride, “Have you ever been with a warrior woman?” I personally have never been with a warrior woman, but this evening I attended the Anita Borg Awards in San Jose, and was in the presence of a warrior woman, Padmasree Warrior, the CTO of Cisco. After her keynote speech I knew how Wash felt.
Lately, I’ve been taking stock of women in engineering that have inspired and challenged me. My favorite being my Professor at Duke Lisa Huettel. But, I’ve felt a strange void. I’ve been looking for someone who symbols almost exactly who I want to be in 10 or 20 years. Some who is articulate, stylish, and graceful, in essence a femgineer. And until now no one embodied these traits for me, until I listened and watched Padmasree deliver her keynote.
I’ve attended many keynotes by the likes of Madeleine Albright, Tom Wolfe, and read transcripts of keynotes of Steve Jobs and Carly Fiorina, but I must say this was hands down the best I’ve every experienced in my life! I left feeling inspired but also light-hearted. There were two points she made that really spoke to me. First, Padmasree said that she never understood why people talk about balance as if work and life are constantly at odds with each other. She insteads focuses on integrating work and life. Second, she said you shape your opportunities. I don’t think of myself as a naturally talented coder or having an astronomically high IQ, but I think I make up for those two areas with my drive and ambition, and use those as leverage to land opportunities.
So thank you Ms. Warrior for sharing your drive and courage with me tonight, and being a fabulous femgineer 🙂
