At 22, life feels pretty rich. Angst ridden, maybe. Full of promise, absolutely. Beginning my senior year at Santa Clara University in 2002, Beyonce was still part of Destiny’s Child, and my Seattle Mariners had just won 116 games. Roughly half of the students in my undergrad business classes were female, and the honors business group to which I belonged had a gender-similar distribution. While there were only 13 females in the U.S. Senate (13 percent) and a paltry three female CEOs in the Fortune 500 (1.4 percent), this concept of the “glass ceiling” was categorically not a problem of my generation. What glass ceiling? Surely, we were past it. Given my own life observations and experiences, it seemed clear that the strong and capable women of the prior generation had already fought that profoundly important battle. Sure, we hadn’t had a female president yet, and executive ranks weren’t quite 50-50, but I knew with that senior-in-college certainty that we were basically “there.” My generation didn’t need to fight to play sports (thanks, Title IX) or to get a higher education. My class photo would look nothing like my father’s law school graduation picture proudly framed in his office. I recall time and time again as a child counting the women in the picture. It was (always) three. I remember that vividly because it was so remarkably foreign to my own experience. Thankfully, that wasn’t going to be a problem for me—that battle had been fought and won. When I graduated at the end of that year, I would enjoy entering a mostly gender-equal workforce. Neither I nor my other female classmates had any reason not to expect parity in treatment, opportunity, and pay.

Fast-forward to 2013.

At this point, I had been working as a reinsurance broker for 10 years, experiencing great opportunities navigating a still decidedly male industry and largely balking at anyone who suggested that the path to the top was more difficult for women. But as I was promoted to executive vice president, I could count on a single hand the other female EVPs at our firm (a title whose ranks number around 100 globally). This fact very literally caused me pause. I began to rethink my staunch position that all of these “issues” were behind us. I started thinking about it differently and, frankly, just paying a bit closer attention. In 2013, there were 20 female senators (20 percent) and 22 female CEOs of Fortune 500 companies (4 percent). That was progress from my halcyon college days, but frankly, it is pretty pitiful. What happened to 50 percent? I began to realize that the issue hadn’t quite been as effectively resolved as I might have assumed. I recalled the words of one female client, which I had ignored as irrelevant, realizing they may be more accurate than I previously cared to admit: I needed to fight for other women, advocate more, and very simply recognize that this issue was indeed still an issue for my generation. Because while I had assumed we were past it, the reality is, we really aren’t. I hope that this message reaches others, and that my contemporaries take up what we all felt was a cause for our mothers’ generation. Moreover, the issue of parity isn’t limited to gender, and efforts should be made toward broad inclusivity around gender, race, and ethnicity, among other things. While my comments are focused on my own experiences as a female in business, there are certainly parallels that I hope will resonate more broadly for diversity in general.

I summarize some actionable considerations on how each individual can help to take on that notion of a glass ceiling and be an advocate for women (and other underrepresented groups) in the business environment:

Demonstrate . . .

. . . not just your aptitude but your intention to excel and your unwillingness to take an unsupportable “No” for an answer. You are likely capable of doing the job, of making the pitch, of contributing to the team.

From the very beginning of one’s career, I have found that clearly demonstrating excellence will catapult you quickly forward. Demonstrate eagerness for new opportunities and ask to be involved on new projects, to do more work. We have all heard time and time again of research saying young girls are less likely to raise their hands in class or speak up at a meeting. How can your excellence be recognized if you do not speak up? Here, particularly if this is an area of comfort for you, encourage others who are less eager to share their views. Open the door for someone else to make her voice heard. It is also well documented that women feel more confident speaking as experts, with considerable data or experience substantiating a point, while men are generally happy to opine extemporaneously. Embrace this approach and find areas in which to hone your expertise so that you may demonstrate it categorically. Yes, it will take some additional legwork (and a little foresight), but embrace it as an investment in your career, your future, your ability to demonstrate excellence and be invaluable.

Elevate . . .

. . . your game. Walk in and own the room, because if you don’t, someone else will, and, frankly, you are probably pretty impressive.

I have often noted that the most successful women (and men) in the insurance industry have a strong executive presence. They command attention simply by exuding confidence. Some things are cosmetic and fairly easy, like a firm handshake, eye contact, and being the most smartly dressed person in the room. Never match the lowest common denominator—if anyone is in a suit, wear a suit. This is oddly more difficult for women as business casual pervades, presenting all sorts of gray areas for women. When in doubt, overdress classically.

Have you ever noticed that the most confident, often senior-most executives rarely sit up straight at a table, copiously taking notes? There is generally a relaxed and confident air about them. The best are yet very engaged because, rather than planning their book report of the meeting, they are experiencing the meeting, actively listening and speaking in turn. Don’t get me wrong: If your role is to provide the notes for the meeting, make it the best book report of all time. But if it’s not, think about your presence each day you walk in the office, each time you enter a meeting, or even when you get on a WebEx or conference call. This is your brand—cultivate it.

Advocate . . .

. . . for yourself, but also for your female peers and those coming behind you. Advocacy is not for special treatment or affirmative action. Advocacy is for parity in opportunity, treatment, and respect (and also in compensation, but that’s another book).

In 2013, I had the privilege of attending an inaugural women’s leadership event put on by Willis in London. The impetus of the event was actually the retirement of our company’s highest-ranking female executive. An incredibly impressive woman, this particular woman’s legacy will be strong. However, in retrospect, she said she was underwhelmed by her own contribution to the advocacy of other women while she was scaling the proverbial Everest of the male insurance world. She wanted this event to engender that kind of future support. Now, I imagine that she still did a lot for other women (if we know one thing about our own gender, we females expect an awful lot of ourselves), but simply her observation made me think—what had I done for my female peers and junior associates to help position them for success in an industry where solving for female executive achievement was still more of a complex calculus algorithm to a male’s simple math? By this point, the epiphanies of lacking parity for women in the insurance industry seemed to be everywhere for me, and this point on advocacy was a mighty explosion in my mind. Really, I hadn’t done that much. I had always been serious about the advancement and training of junior associates, but this was true whether they were female or male. I could do more to raise awareness and be an advocate for female colleagues so that hopefully when I retire, I can be proud of this legacy.

How can each of us advocate? Be a mentor or a sponsor. These words get thrown around a lot, and I am quite pleased if these occur organically rather than in contrived situations, such as a prescription from human resources that everyone selects a mentor from a big list of people within the company. To me, it simply means to provide support and guidance to the individual and to help elevate that person within the organization. Get their name out; recommend them for new projects and opportunities. Require respect on their behalf. Push back when you hear unfair categorizations of strong women for traits that otherwise would be applauded in men.

As a mentor or sponsor, be flexible and understanding. This goes not just for women but also for men. When I flew to London for the conference I mentioned, my son Aidan was two months old. It was important to me to go, so I grabbed my baby and my mom, and we all hopped on a plane. I juggled an infant trying to cope with an eight-hour time change and a breast pump with the wrong voltage attachment. On a scale of stressful and complicated, it was up there. That is just one of my many difficult “working mom” stories, and I am only one of countless women who can share such experiences. But men are parents, too, and at the end of the day, advocating for flexibility will help everyone and will keep more fabulously capable women in the workforce, on their way up that ladder.

Innovate . . .

. . . by thinking differently. After all, it is highly likely that your perspective is different and therefore your approach to solving a problem unique. Your inimitable perspective is an asset you can take to the bank.

I listened to a panel at a diversity summit. The summit was focused on women, but this particular panel included a male of a non-Caucasian ethnicity (which is no doubt another underrepresented group in insurance). He ran procurement for a large multinational and said something that resonated immensely with me. If five teams of lawyers (or reinsurance brokers, or consultants, or any team really) come to him with a pitch for services, the crux of their offering will be largely the same. But a team that includes diversity of personnel includes diversity of perspectives if for no other reason than from diversity of formative experiences. Diversity of perspectives when brainstorming how to solve deeply complex problems must yield a broader potential list of solutions. A team that maintains this diversity, and with it a respectful discourse on building the best solution, will be on a better course for innovation—a better course for a better solution. I believe this to be categorically true when teams balance expertise with gender (and other) diversity. Innovation’s best examples in our society may seem to point to individuals—a brilliant person with a unique idea. A Steve Jobs or an Elon Musk receives endless glory. But innovation in reality is brought to life through teams that game plan, strategize, and problem solve. Diversity of perspective, experience, thought, and approach are natural partners to maximizing thought innovation. So, in my opinion, any company with a solely white, male board is kidding itself when it believes it has this complexity covered. This is actually where I believe that pure experience may be trumped by diversity of perspective. If the insurance industry sits back and lets the current cycle of executive and board hiring exist, change will continue to be elusive because executive (and board) opportunities are often filled directly through an internal network of those closest to the current executives who typically have substantial tenure. Frankly, there isn’t much diversity in that pool. Maybe, in order for companies to better innovate, years of experience should be trumped by diversity of perspective. It is at least worth consideration.

Finally, My Least Favorite but of Critical Importance: Escalate . . .

. . . issues of discriminatory and biased practices. Don’t just laugh off comments because “you can handle it.” Be earnestly helpful in building awareness.

Sometimes comments or actions are overtly inappropriate. However, in my experience, most are largely unintended and the source of long-held social and societal biases. These types of biases pervade daily working life and create challenges in perpetuity unless and until addressed. Oddly, the former (overtly discriminatory practices) should be somewhat easier, if more uncomfortable, to deal with. These include actions and practices that are clearly wrong, such as sexual harassment. There is considerable training within corporations today to deal with sexual harassment, what qualifies, and how to escalate such an issue. As such, I will leave that to the side, as at least some semblance of tools (and laws) exist to combat its presence. Nevertheless, it is the unintentional and/or unwitting biases that can be trickier both to identify and to maneuver. How does one appropriately build awareness without creating an uncomfortable work environment? After all, in my own personal experience, these biases are held by some I would consider to be huge supporters of mine, men (and sometimes even women) who have sponsored me throughout my career, many who have daughters for whom they want to have parity in opportunities. These are not bad people—categorically, quite the opposite. In saying this, one must recognize that I, too, am not above reproach; all of us have biases that manifest in our daily lives. The best we can do is to be more aware and consciously consider them so as to deliberately combat them. Casting blame or categorizing someone as “sexist” or “misogynistic” for their biases is pejorative and counterproductive. How negative are these names and, moreover, how terrible does it feel to ever be labeled? Totally counterproductive, especially as the goal is to raise awareness and improve parity in our working environment.

Let me give a few personal examples. First, a dear mentor of mine more than once commented that I should be assigned to a particular account because the reinsurance buyer was female. I finally had to assert that this categorically was not why I should be selected. I should be on an account because I improve the team and I solve problems in a way that the client appreciates. Moreover, the view that women prefer to work with women simply because they are women is painfully flawed. I want to work with the best. I’m agnostic as to whether that is a man or a woman. On the flip side, wouldn’t we be up in arms if they said only a man should work on a certain team because the client was a man?

Another example came when our company decided to open a new office and a position to run that office needed to be filled. This required relocation for anyone within the company. I was a prime candidate given a number of reasons (including a large client local to this city, which took me there frequently), but I was never asked if I would be interested. I felt that it was assumed I would not relocate because my husband also has a career and ties to our current location. When I finally pressed the topic, this was affirmed. Admittedly, the timing was difficult and I would not have, for personal reasons, made the move. However, I was disappointed not to be asked. It seemed somehow unfair that a male candidate whose wife did not work outside the home would be automatically considered for this type of relocation opportunity and I would not. Shouldn’t I have had the opportunity to consider it?

This final example, which in order of occurrence was actually the first of these instances, was a true wake-up call to the inherent and unfair biases that I would face. Our industry is a small one, and we interact with competitors, clients, and prospects on a regular basis in the small markets in which we operate. Our industry is also one that remains based at least partially on trusted customer-adviser relationships and includes substantial travel and too many business dinners. In one such instance, I was traveling with a client (a 40-something male) in Bermuda for reinsurance program marketing. I was the junior associate (a 20-something female) on the account, and the lead broker (a 40-something male) was also traveling in our group. This was a fairly common occurrence for me, being generally younger and definitively less male than the typical group I interacted with. Despite my age, I worked very hard, had strong client rapport, and had proven my ability to add effective discourse to our client work and marketing sessions. The lead broker, being a good mentor, included me in the trip for these reasons. On this occasion, prior to heading to dinner, we ran into a senior colleague from another office within our company. As the lead broker stayed to chat with him, I accompanied the client to order a drink. The colleague proceeded to ask the senior broker why he bothered to bring me along on such a trip—effectively asking, what could someone like me possibly add to these discussions? Next, he insinuated it must have had something to do with the clients’ appreciation of young females in his entourage. When the lead broker relayed this to me, I was shocked, frustrated, ashamed, and furious all at the same time. None of this could have been further from the truth, and how quickly some man could toss aside my hard work and value in such an off-handed, unfair, and ignorant comment. The unfortunate thing is, I have heard similar comments spoken at any given time regarding many other females in my industry. Maybe not precisely the same, but of the same ilk. All generally unfounded, and each time undermining of the woman’s business acumen. I vehemently sound off to this type of chatter, but I doubt I hear even a fraction of it. As women, we must stand firm to counteract such comments. We also need our male counterparts to help put a stop to this kind of prattle. It is biased and demeaning and simply way too easy to laugh off or, worse yet, repeat. Be an advocate for yourself and, in these instances, for other women.

These “inadvertent” comments must be appropriately but mindfully escalated, to create awareness instead of tension. They need not be handled delicately so as to walk on proverbial eggshells but rather, because the goal is to change the face of the issue, with alacrity. Take the person aside and have a mature, respectful conversation about how the comments affected you. Sometimes I find it oddly effective to put it in the context of their own daughter, if they have one. Assume that they didn’t even realize the effect the comment would have. Approach it as though you are actually trying to change future behavior, not assign blame. As you consider your approach, think of the next generation of women that comes behind you. We have the ability to guide practices so the next generation has a more equitable footing, and that is an admirable legacy.

It is our opportunity to continue to promote the goal of breaking the glass ceiling, to recognize that the work is not yet done! While it seemed daunting and disappointing at first to me, it is actually an exciting opportunity to be engaged and to catalyze change. This kind of change requires grassroots efforts from the majority. It needs a lot of soldiers (in really good shoes). We can take up the baton to demonstrate ability, elevate your individual brand, innovate through a unique approach, advocate for other women, and, finally, escalate issues that inhibit women’s ability to operate at the top of our game. Because the top of women’s game goes right through the roof—and the glass ceiling.