Nearly half of women think they have more social barriers to overcome than previous generations (44%), according to new research.<br /><br />A survey of 2,000 women 25-40 and 55-80 looked at how women view themselves in society and found that four in five agree that society puts a lot of pressure on women to look or act a certain way.<br /><br />The top barriers women find themselves faced with are feeling like they need to “cover up” or hide parts of their body (23%) and dealing with the fear of aging (20%).<br /><br />Nearly a fifth also struggle with trying to be all things to all people (19%) and balancing their work and family lives (18%).<br /><br />Seven in 10 women admitted that they care what others think or say about them (71%), feeling more judged than empowered about their body shape/size (38%), appearance (35%) and physical health (31%).<br /><br />However, the survey, conducted by OnePoll for FitRight Fresh Start, found that despite all of the challenges they face, 93% of women surveyed are proud of their gender.<br /><br />In fact, a majority of women are feeling more confident today than they did 10 years ago (77%), and 63% feel more empowered today than prior to the pandemic.<br /><br />To help themselves feel more empowered, women are overcoming the need to be perfect in everything they do (32%) and are being patient with themselves and everyone else (31%).<br /><br />According to respondents, the top traits for feeling empowered are confidence (19%) and honesty (17%), finding inspiration in notable famous women such as Oprah Winfrey, Princess Diana and Taylor Swift — or in their own lives, through their mother, grandmother or even an old boss.<br /><br />Knowledge is also a powerful tool, according to one in six women who said that being well-informed also helps them feel empowered. Twenty-nine percent shared that making informed decisions allows them to feel more confident, and 27% said educating themselves about world issues helps, too.<br /><br />Some advice they’d give other women to help them feel empowered is to be comfortable in their own skin (16%), trust their instincts (15%) and knowledge is power (13%).<br /><br />Those surveyed also said it’s important for successful women to stay positive (30%) and surround themselves with positive people (29%).<br /><br />However, respondents acknowledge that there will always be moments of doubt. The average woman still finds themselves feeling self-conscious about their body four days a week.<br /><br />When asked what they feel self-conscious about, the top concern was increased physical challenges as they age like aching body parts or incontinence (44%).<br /><br />More than a third of women surveyed have experienced incontinence (34%), averaging three times a week, worrying about drinking too many liquids (14%) or lifting weights (14%).
