In this op-ed article, Margarit Mirzoyan, the Media Projects Manager at Regional Post Media, looks at the environment as one of the decisive factors determining the future of women.
Text : Margarit Mirzoyan
Two stories
One of my male colleagues once told me that if you ask any woman who has achieved success, she will share one of two stories. She either grew up or worked in a supportive environment where her family and colleagues encouraged her to pursue her dreams, or she found her motivation and resilience in a dysfunctional setting where her achievements and goals were undermined, even by those closest to her. In both cases, the decisive factor is the environment.
James Clear, the author of Atomic Habits, says, “Environment is the invisible hand that shapes human behavior. We tend to believe our habits are a product of our motivation, talent, and effort. Certainly, these qualities matter. But the surprising thing is that your personal characteristics tend to get overpowered by your environment over a long period.” Here, Clear refers to the physical environment you build around yourself that makes succeeding easier. However, I believe that the people in your life are the building blocks of your environment.
The vinyl collection
My mom started her career as a biology teacher at a Waldorf school in the mid-90s. While she loved her work, she always knew something else was out there. After a while, she discovered curative pedagogy and realized that it was something she would like to pursue. She began educating herself, attending various courses and workshops abroad. By 2012, she was already working with special children as a curative pedagogue in the same school. One thing led to another, and in 2020, at the age of 52, she finally realized her dream and opened a curative pedagogy center in Yerevan, simultaneously fulfilling her role as a full-time mother of two. My father, a diplomat, was frequently traveling, which would make things a bit harder for her, but if, for someone, this would be an excuse to slow down, my mom would always make time for her passion.
One of my most distinctive memories is of my mom leaving for Moscow to participate in a seminar. It’s my brother, my aunt, and I standing at the departure zone, watching her leave. One might say that for a child, it could be a stressful experience, but for me, it’s one of the most important memories. My brother was cheering that we would spend a whole week with our aunt since our dad was also on a work trip, while for me, it was a moment of immense pride. I imagined my future self in the same position as my mom—traveling, learning, and discovering.
At first, I would give the whole credit to my mother, admiring her dedication and hard-working nature.
But with time, I noticed one more element – the environment she lived in – it was full of people continuously encouraging her.
My grandfather, a quite complex figure of wisdom, nurtured a culture of learning within his family. He always encouraged his daughters to read, educate themselves, play chess, and express their interest in the world. My mom would always mention discipline and dedication as something she learned from her dad. She would always remember how he made her and her sister dig through his huge vinyl collection, listen to various compositions, and guess the authors. This was their little game, probably replicating the competitiveness they would possibly need in adult life.
My father, the person who contributed to the next environment my mom discovered already as an adult, never imposed traditional gender roles on her. It’s not that he would always get and agree with the ideas and aspirations of my mom, but still, he would give constructive advice and encourage her to act and grow.
Cultivating
Fortunately, I also became the lucky recipient of these supportive family dynamics. “Do whatever you want, but make sure you do it in the best possible way,” my dad always says. These words have stuck with me for many years, becoming the lens through which I try to look at everything I do. My mom’s version of this saying is, “Do whatever you want as long as it makes you happy.”
Notably, these words of encouragement were never confined to specific career paths but encompassed personal growth and fulfillment in all aspects of life. Apparently, my family always viewed success as fulfilling one’s potential as a person, whether it means climbing high up the career ladder, becoming a parent, traveling, or pursuing other passions. The only requirement was and still is – to do your best.
The same advice was given to my brother, and as I reflect on my experience, I see the immense importance of an environment built on a gender-neutral support system. It nurtures a reality where equality is not a simple cliche and where outright discouragement within our families or at work is not appreciated.
Sharp and Accurate
Throughout our lives, we move from one environment to another, eventually creating our own. The environment built within our families prepares us to enter the bigger world, where the choice and responsibility for the environment are already ours.
When I first joined our team, the key pillar of the environment my colleagues built was simply trust, meaning trust towards my writing, my intuition, and the way I saw the magazine. When I first started working here as a journalist, the only gender bias I received was from some of the people I interviewed, who were way out of my ecosystem. But at the end of the day, I would be back to the office, where I could take deep breath and continue working.
For this issue of Regional Post magazine, we’ve interviewed many women across diverse industries. From banking professionals to entrepreneurs, each woman would name the environment as a critical factor that enabled them to be where they are today. If appearing in a positive family environment is a matter of luck, later in life, we take the lead, and considering the life-changing effect an environment can have on us, we should make our choices sharp and accurate to lead the lives we want whether it’s career or personal life.
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