Women in the Workplace

Good Woman Project

Cultivating our hearts is something of an art. The practice of any art, according to philosopher Erich Fromm, requires discipline, concentration, patience and supreme concern.

1. Discipline. Within the art of cultivating your heart, the practice of discipline is as simple as focusing your thoughts on what is right, true, honest and good (you are your thoughts, never forget this – Philippians 4:8).

2. Concentration. Concentration implies living fully in the present, engaged in what is noble and right, rejecting false ideas implanted by the media (lust, sexuality as the basis of intimacy, individualism and false standards of womanhood) and also rejecting today’s greedy corporate culture that preaches entitlement above all else. When you feel you’re entitled to something, it’s easy to get caught up in emotional wrong-doings. For instance, if you’re lonely and feel you’re entitled to romance, then your heart will make up excuses if you find it in the wrong place.

3. Patience. If we fall, we get up, forgive ourselves and try again, knowing that God, our biggest fan, roots us onwards.

4. Supreme concern. The condition of practicing any art is supreme concern with its mastery. This means we must be diligent, considering the art of cultivating our hearts to be of supreme importance.

Are Men Scared Of Strong And Talented Women? by Jed Brewer

Some men see a successful woman, or a talented woman, or a capable woman as a threat. The woman’s awesomeness holds up a mirror to what’s missing in that guy’s own life, and he hates her for it.

It gets worse, though. That same kind of man doesn’t really have friendships with other guys, and for the same reason. He can only stand to be around wounded, insecure, passive men. Because Real Men scare the crap out of him.

So, that kind of guy views everyone and everything as competition. He can’t be happy for anybody else, ever. He can’t celebrate other people’s victories. And he can’t even enjoy his own, because he always feels like he’s at a deficit.

…there is a different kind of man out there. He’s far rarer, but I promise he does exist.

This is a man who knows what he brings to the table. Knows what his strengths are. Knows what his weaknesses are. And accepts himself.

Some people would call that “confidence”, and that’s a part of it. But what we’re really talking about, though, is actual, Biblical humility. Humility doesn’t mean being down on yourself. It means knowing who you are, and accepting it.

A humble man is able to be confident. He’s confident in the strengths God has given him. He’s aware of his growing edges, and he takes them seriously, but he’s also confident that God is at work sanding them down. He’s confident that there is a purpose to his life – that he was made for a reason – and, because of that, he’s able to face uncertainty in life with resolve, and not panic.

As I bet you’re guessing, that kind of real humility comes from a deep walk with the Lord. Knowing that you are loved and accepted, as you are, with full disclosure of all your shortcomings, allows you to love, and accept, yourself. To quote David Mamet, humility is peace.

This all brings us back to your question. Would that humble man be attracted to a strong and talented woman? Yes, of course. But that only tells part of the story.

A humble man wants a humble woman. So that means a woman who is in touch with both her strengths and her weaknesses. A woman who embraces and develops her gifts, but who also faces her insecurities and hang-ups head on.

A humble, Godly man wants to love a woman completely. He wants to love all of her, including the parts that could use some work. But the woman has to accept herself in order to receive that love. Otherwise it falls on deaf ears, or, worse, is rejected.