8. Closing the Gender Wage Gap for Women
Victoria Pynchon
After 25 years in high stakes business litigation, Victoria Pynchon took a mediation course that changed her life. Nearly a decade after receiving her degree in conflict resolution from the world-famous Straus Institute, her business, She Negotiates Consulting and Training is prospering. More importantly, it is helping individual women close their own personal gender wage gap.
How Did You Start Using Your Talents?
Going out on her own she discovered how hard it was to attract business. To deal with that frustration, she introduced herself to the web, social media, then in 2005, blogging. “Now, everything I do is sourced in social media and networking on the internet, and my business is international.”
The Most Impactful Turning Point?
I hit a brick wall in my law career in my late 40s or early 50s, trying to figure out what else to do. I took a mediation course. It was as if the heavens were torn open and angels descended! Freed from the adversarial contentiousness of law, I found new energy.
The Most Powerful Lessons Learned?
Committing to “90 meetings in 90 days”—a classic technique in recovery programs—gave her a foundation for her new business. She relearned the basics: shut up and listen, learn from the winners, cultivate gratitude, extend the hand of friendship, and take action. Practicing these principles built her business.
On Her Bookshelf
Getting to Yes, by Fisher and Ury
Women Don’t Ask: The High Cost of Avoiding Negotiation, and Positive Strategies for Change, by Linda Babcock and Sara Laschever
Capital in the Twenty-First Century, by Thomas Piketty
The Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined, by Steven Pinker
Top Tools on Her Browser
Social media, see below.
Connecting With Victoria Pynchon
Website:
shenegotiates.com
Twitter:
vickiepynchon
Facebook:
victoriapynchon
Free Gift
Copy of Success as a Mediator for Dummies or The Grownups’ ABCs of Conflict Resolution.
