"Get into that kitchen"...…

International Women’s Day (8 March) passed by relatively quietly for me. I was at work and there didn’t seem to be any more commotion than usual. Verbal Olympics aside, the office seemed the same. Working in the Travel and Tourism industry it is easy to notice the gender imbalance, where women are in the majority.

So why didn’t I notice anything? Head in the sand and stuck up other places, was not the answer I was looking for.

It’s a day to recognise the achievements of women in all areas of endeavour, as I say to my wife, for her, everyday is Valentine’s Day. Women in my industry have forged an identity and I know how strong they are because I work with them every day. Do they need this day for validation on a single day or has the day become passé? Does it get lost with too many other International Days?

International stay away from work day? International let’s have a really long lunch day? Or one of my all time favourites, International lay on the lounge with the remote day.

Satire aside (I hope that’s satire), women need recognition every day, the same as everyone else. To generalise, we don’t often go out of our way to show people recognition or praise them for their work or their accomplishments. Why do we need specific days for nurses and anyone else who hasn’t had a pat on the back, because we don't remember to show them recognition? Shame on us.

There are hundreds of recognised world days (http://bit.ly/2ITxT5a) including Music Day, Population Day, Asteroid Day and Migratory Bird Day, I kid you not. If I wasn’t overwhelmed before, I am now. Let's get rid of some of the more inane days and use the rest for raising the profile of as may people as need recognition.

If we can just get past ourselves, our egos and the importance of our own lives, I’m sure recognition for others, especially women would come much easier. The need for specific days would fall away and people would know if you respected them and their work.

The women I respect in the travel industry for their accomplishments know who they are. As far as I’m concerned, every day is International Women’s Day for them.

Hopefully we've come a long way from the song......"and rattle those pots and pans".