You failed as a leader

All of a sudden, you feel a strange anxiety. You find yourself in a meeting with a client, but you can't find your notes and have to rely on your memory... Which seems to fail you.

What was the client's company name again? You need to find it on the slide. What is a budget? You don't remember. What is the target group? Ummmm...

"Ummms" and "yhmmmms" litter your presentation, making it clear you have no idea about the client and the campaign. You feel embarrassed seeing disappointment on your boss' face. Mr Alexander was always your mentor and supporter and here you were, presenting your first big project, stammering and confused. Your heart breaks as you see disappointment change into irritation.

"That would be enough, Minerva. I won't let you embarrass yourself and my company any longer. You're clearly not qualified to lead a project... Perhaps it is as much my mistake as it is your failure. After all, I shouldn't have made a woman a leader. You're just not good enough to do it. You'll never be. Any man is better qualified to be a leader than you are..." He looks at you critically but remains calm. You shiver under the gaze of man whose opinion you value above any other.

"Truth is, Minerva, you're not a leader. You're a follower. A subordinate. The most you can ever accomplish is being a good, obedient employee for your male superior." He goes on and you feel anger and arousal building up in the same time. "You shouldn't worry about thinking too much... That's the men's job. You should just focus on following orders and looking pretty. That's all you're good for. Being in charge is just not for you."

You stand there as he tells you how bad leader you are. How all your dreams of career have been misguided as all women are naturally inferior to men.