I’ve been thinking about the role of a father and the impact we have on our daughters & the daughters of others. The day our daughter was born I wrote a letter to her & kept it tucked away until her wedding day 32 years later.

The essence of the letter was a promise I would do everything I could to support her throughout her life, wherever that road might lead. Whenever we catch up or I think of her, my sense is she has become the person I’d hoped she would. Happy, healthy & contributing. She & her partner have 4 beautiful kids & together have managed to find life-work balance while she also enjoys a successful career.

Growing up in a family that reinforced girls can do anything, she’s never known any different. She’s carried this thinking through her teenage years into adulthood & her career. She’s now building the same thinking in her daughter. Accepting that gender be used to determine her pay grade, status, career progression or seniority is an anathema to her.

And that’s where all fathers with daughters come in.

Think about your daughter from that first time you held her in your arms. She now misses out on a job, a pay rise, promotion or even a simple job interview, just because she’s a she?

Have you ever discriminated against someone else’s daughter?

Time to reset.

Robert McMurtrie
People Recruitment Group