Tall People = Leaders

I recently read the book Blink by Malcolm Gladwell, and if you haven't read it, I highly recommend it. I took about a year to read it because Gladwell made me stop to think so many times. One particular point that he made in the book dealt with tall people. "Most of us, in ways that we are not entirely aware of, automatically associate leadership ability with imposing physical stature," Gladwell says. "We have a sense, in our minds, of what a leader is supposed to look like, and that stereotype is so powerful that when someone fits it, we simply become blind to other considerations." (Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/tech-tallest-execs-2012-11?op=1#ixzz2Y6VXsh00)

This quote has really made me stop to think, especially given that I am only about 5 feet tall. I believe that there is a preconception that people have when seeing a short, Asian female. I notice a difference in how people respond to me when I wear heels to elevate my height or when I decide to wear flats; I also notice when people seem pleasantly surprised by my leadership or speaking abilities when I present at professional conferences or meet them informally in the workplace. In a blink, people are quick to judge, and clearly the relationship between physical stature and leadership have been strongly correlated, whereas short Asian females and leadership roles have not. So, this causes me to stop to think about how I can surpass these quick judgments and be the exception to this unwritten rule and stereotype.