Someone who is much older than you, or from a different race, or a different gender than you may not be as convincing to you, as someone with whom you can closely identify. This is an important issue in multicultural career planning. At this time many people of color, women, GLBT, and people with disabilities are not well represented in some of the most prestigious and high paying professional areas. When considering career planning, it is important to consider your options broadly and not rule out possibilities just because they are unfamiliar to you. Another barrier that is closely related to the first involves a lack of a professional support network.
Many career opportunities flow from our connections with other people.
Most people find their comfort zone with others who are similar to them, in a variety of ways. That might be people who work in the same profession, people who share similar values and interests, and inadvertently, it may mean people who share the same demographic characteristics. There can be very difficult barriers in the form of discrimination against women or members of minority groups. This can take many forms including unequal pay, sexual harassment, negative stereotyping, and insidious barriers to opportunity by not receiving as many high profile responsibilities at work that might lead to promotion. Sometimes co-workers or employers have fear or hostile feelings toward people who are different from them.