What if we didn't have to be "one of the guys"? | Emily Nichols | TEDxMcMasterU

Emily Nichols (P. Eng.) at TEDxMcMasterU 2023. #future #leadership #workplace #communication #gender #engineering

She’s an engineer who loved working in factories, but she didn’t always love being ‘one of the guys’. Authentic and entertaining, Emily Nichols reminds us that words become habits, language evolves, and we control them both. She shines a light on language that limits our thinking and invites us all to deliberately choose our own words. You can reach Emily at https://emilynichols.com

Timestamps:
00:10 Hello. Hey guys!
00:52 Are you “one of the guys”?
01:54 It’s a “manpower” meeting in manufacturing…
02:59 Women in Agriculture: Have you ever seen a barn that says “Janet Smith and daughters”?
04:48 Shirts, swag, and personal protective equipment (PPE)
07:47 This talk is about…
08:10 The future of women in engineering + manufacturing + agriculture + STEM + trades
09:40 Survivor fans: be like Jeff Probst and drop the word “guys”
10:37 Would you rather “act like a lady” or “take it like a man”?
11:50 Discovering that "Language is humanity’s most spectacular open-source project." --Gretchen McCulloch
13:06 Let’s let the next generation grow up to be…exactly who they are.
14:33 A word for the men in our lives
15:45 On making mistakes
16:31 In every conversation, we have a choice…
16:50 Let’s choose words that open minds and open doors…Words shape our world.

Speaking from the stage or the factory floor, Emily Nichols nudges technical people to embrace their human skills, so they can become better problem solvers, team players, and leaders. A professional engineer with decades of experience in manufacturing and innovation, Emily has worked with organizations like PepsiCo, PPG, Janssen, and Henkel, improving products and processes from breakfast cereal to automotive paint and electrical steel. Emily easily connects at all levels of organizations, inspiring deeper understanding and collaborative teamwork. Emily has a B.Sc. in Systems Engineering (University of Guelph) and a M.A.Sc. in Chemical Engineering (McMaster University). She summarized her master’s thesis in five Dr. Seuss rhymes.

Video production and editing by NSHAPS Productions. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx