Between Glamour and Limits - Woman power — when encouragement turns into pressure

This article was originally published in the Swiss magazine Persönlichkeit! (WEKA Business Media AG) in April 2026.

The Duden dictionary defines “woman power” as “the strength, power, and might of women.” And yes — women do have strength. But what society has made of it paints a different picture: the woman who does it all. Who builds a career, raises children, looks good, stays friendly while remaining assertive, and never gets tired. In the 1990s and 2000s, this archetype was marketed as the ideal. Today, many people still live in this shadow, often without realizing it.

Women function to the point of exhaustion, push themselves, and often live only in “autopilot mode.” Eventually, the questions arise: Who am I actually doing this for? What does strength really mean to me?

Power woman versus ordinary woman

What I find particularly fascinating in this context is the contrast between the power woman and the “ordinary” woman. The label alone creates a dividing line: on one side, the one who achieves — on the other, the one who simply “just” lives. Especially with power women who appear successful on the outside, we often see only the result. Not the path to get there, not the detours, the self-doubt, the guilty conscience, the highs, and above all, the lows.

And the men?

Did you know that we have power women, but no power men? While women stand out when they’re labeled “power woman,” this is simply expected of men: strong, resilient, capable — at all times. Apparently, society’s idea of masculinity carries the same pressure — just more quietly.

Men and women live under the weight of unspoken expectations. The words and spaces to talk about it are often missing. They function — often for years — without a break, without questioning it.

As part of an initiative for “International Women’s Day,” I sat down with ten women who had earned the title of “power woman.” What they told me, off the record, was nothing like the polished stories you read in glossy magazines. And then there was Anna — an executive who, in our very first conversation, said something so quietly that I almost missed it …