What’s the difference?

I am the only child to my parents. I have my cousin brother who I consider as my own brother but still I grew up alone. You can call me “Daddy’s Girl” but never snobby or pretentious. I got my way through everything while growing up. I got what I asked for except for those times when my mom would think that I am asking for too much as a girl like staying out late or going to late night movies. But Dad let me do everything; he gave me full freedom but also told me that I should know my limits as a girl. I would ask for new clothes, new bike or anything I wanted and Dad would get it for me. If I were a boy would I gotten all this the same way? I guess not. Because I am a girl and that too, Daddy’s girl, I got everything.

One might think that the girls in the family get everything they want (mostly and also depending on what the parents can afford) because they will be given away in marriage (eventually) and will be given gone to another family where they do not know how their daughters will be treated. But on the hand, boys are built to be strong both mentally and physically and they need to work for what they want or desire. Maybe! But in addition to what I said before, our parents might be knowing that their girls will not be in par with the boys in the outside world.

Not in agreement with what I said? Take for instance, a girl and a boy go through the same classes in the same University and graduating at the same time with the same degree. We all know that girls work hard in terms of studying and getting good grades than boys do and I am a writing example right here. But let us put aside this fact and consider they both got same grades. They go for the same job interview for the same position and get hired. Good. What about their salaries? Are they the same? No. Girls get 20% less than what boys get. Over time, the difference increases and women earn 69% of what men earn.

Simple reason – women don’t negotiate. They always feel that they don’t perform up to the mark. They always think that they can improve in what they do and they are the worst critique that they can have, for the better when it comes to themselves and not so good in the outside world. Men on the other hand, will perform less but will give more credit on to them. Before you all raise a finger against me, it is not me who is making up but it is from the studies that Post had conducted.

Maybe our dads knew that we will be underpaid and that is why they were paying for everything to cover up the difference upfront and we got away with what we wanted and moms always were making sure that we learn the trick of the trade to survive in this so called “equal opportunity” society. One thing I have learnt from this study is, I better know how to ‘toot my own horn.’