Working on improving gender issues is not merely just focusing on women’s rights. It is improving you as an individual as well.

It is looking at yourself, and paying attention to where you stand when it comes to the rights of all genders and sexual orientations. If you are a man, are you an ally to women? Do you have any biases that you may not be fully aware of? Are you fearful of speaking to a woman at work about tough subjects based on your assumptions of how she will react? Or, if you are a woman, do you have biases or doubts of your own place in an organization, simply due to your gender? Despite your gender, you may feel pressured to act and perform a certain way based off of the stereotypes that often surround your gender, but that is not the only way to live. Both men and women feel isolated in different ways when it comes to gender issues, but understanding this can help both move forward together in closing the gap of understanding, and essentially the gap of unspoken inequality. Understanding that breaking down gender barriers can help to reveal the obstacles that you and others of all genders share. It is a win/win result to simply try to understand you’re opposite gender and how you perceive them as an individual. If you learn your biases, discuss them openly and courageously; you’ll learn more about yourself and essentially improve yourself in the process. Extract from MARC blog, March 2012