Women’s path into senior leadership is often described in terms of drawbacks in the formal promotion system. Generally, women in the workplace are as ambitious as men, with 80% of women saying they want to be promoted. But when it comes to the actual ladder, only 93 women get a manager role for every 100 men.

There sure has been some progress, as ten years ago this ratio was around 77 to 100, but the industry is moving slowly and is still far away from parity. Such disruption shows that the real problem lies in unequal access to informal infrastructure and visibility. That’s why women's career paths to leadership are rarely linear, demanding them to seek for alternative routes and uncover hidden opportunities to grow.

While every path to success is unique, there may be common points that help other women find their own way to the top. We spoke with several industry experts about their career turning points and asked them for advice they would give to their younger selves.

Women who shared their stories for Women Leading the Way are showing that one of the biggest turning points in a career is to stop waiting for the industry to acknowledge you and act first.

Taking Responsibility Before the Formal Role

One of the toughest challenges in a career path may be deciding whether to grow within one company or leave for good. For Adriana Rivas, COO and Chief Biwitech Development Officer at BIGWISE Corp, the defining decision was to stay in the company rather than seek promotion elsewhere and fight her way up. That decision was risky since she had to push for progress inside environments that, as she puts it, “weren’t built around me in the first place.”

To show her readiness, she took on additional responsibility and became accountable for work that others refused to touch. That helped her to build authority long before the formal promotion.

Considering a possible promotion, many women are used to thinking that hard work alone can lead to success and make one visible. However, Adriana’s story shows that this may not be enough. In practice, showing your results and taking responsibility before the formal role is no less important than the quality of the work itself.

The problem here is that the environment may struggle with women who are trying to become visible, viewing them as difficult to deal with. “The danger is that women who strive to be recognized in the corporate world are often considered ‘difficult’ before they are considered ‘capable.’ Nonetheless, I continued to fight, and eventually the two labels collapsed into one,” says Adriana.

To successfully deal with both environmental hostility and new liabilities, she would advise her earlier self not to wait until she feels prepared enough, as that sense will eventually come through action. Waiting until all cards match may slow you down and cause you to miss the opportunity.

“For many years, I believed that results would speak for themselves, yet they did not. Success cannot always be linked to being more qualified than anyone else. What determines success in the case of women is the ability to make oneself visible and share knowledge,” Adriana states.

Leaving the Safe Path

Adraiana’s case shows that trying to climb the corporate ladder within one company can be demanding. On the other hand, however, leaving for other opportunities is not less challenging.

Elisabeth Bykoff, Founder and CEO of Boxsy Inc., says that she decided to leave PwC after ten years without another job lined up. She had moved from experienced associate to director and was on the partner track, which, in paper, was a prestigious and recognisable role. That was exactly what made her look for other work, as she understood she was staying because of the safe path, but she wanted something more suitable for her.

Leaving for something new required discipline and a cold head. Elisabeth shared her experience of spending three months networking and interviewing widely which was not the most pleasant experience. However, the risk eventually paid off, and she came to tech, where she became Regional Vice President at a late-stage Silicon Valley startup. This role was as prestigious as a partner but more demanding, offering greater courage, more freedom and opportunities.

“That experience taught me that career-defining growth rarely comes from staying comfortable, and sometimes leadership begins the moment you’re willing to leave the script you thought you were supposed to follow,” says Elisabeth.

These words exactly match her advice for her earlier self and for women looking to grow in the industry. In Elisabeth's eyes, it is important not to fear potential setbacks or moments of uncertainty as they prepare for the next level of their career. “Stay resilient, ask for support sooner, and don’t let other people’s perception of your limits define your ambition,” she says.

Going Forward Without Playbooks

That idea is supported by the story of Gina Antoniello, Executive Director at SafeBets. She took the riskiest decision to leave the NBA, a global sports business, to help launch a North American football league with ambitions to challenge the NFL. She moved from one of the most established sports properties into something vague and unstable.

This decision was not only risky but also ambitious, as there was no prepared plan for building the entire sports league from scratch. It required her to work in a foggy environment and deal with great ambiguity. “There was literally no playbook,” says Gina. She has to deal with eight teams along with the commercial, operational, brand, and fan engagement foundations.

Her story shows that success may lie there where growth is not guaranteed at all. Such an environment gives you full freedom, and here experience and leadership can be demonstrated on a large scale. “This experience showed me that leadership is not simply about managing what is already working. Creating momentum where none exists may be even more important,” says Gina.

Sure, it may be frightening to push yourself into a plain field without a clear plan, but Gina advises against mistaking discomfort for unreadiness, as some of the most formative opportunities arise before the feeling of preparedness appears. “Trust that your distinct perspective is part of the value you bring to the table,” concludes Gina.

Conclusion

The stories Adriana, Elisabeth, and Gina shared with us show that there is no universal formula for reaching the top, since they had very different experiences and faced distinct barriers before succeeding. However, their experiences point to the same conclusion that growth requires building leadership before formal approval.

The defining career decisions behind women’s paths are often connected with high-level risks and discomfort. This, however, should not stop her from pushing forward, since the true sense of readiness may come only during the action.

Drofa Comms is thankful to Adriana Rivas, Elisabeth Bykoff, and Gina Antoniello for contributing their expertise to this Women Leading the Way article.