A rational, honest approach is the foundation, not a radical militant war cry. This allies equally to men. Too often do women who call themselves feminists fall into this category. It’s the foolish jump, from being a woman who accepts arbitrary cultural norms as absolutes to being a woman who denies the obvious differences between male and female that leads to irrational and destructive behaviors. Happiness is partially determined by expectations, and the satisfaction from achieving goals comes from growing. Ambition should be avoided, for it is foolish, short-sighted, sophistic, self-centered and will leave you feeling empty (you think all those “top business executives” are happy? Think again. They often fail to recognize that, say, the CEO works for his employees, and not the other way around.). What I often observe is women who don’t actually depart from worrying and living to other people’s expectations, but rather women who replace their “female values” with “masculine values.” This is brainless, and merely substitutes one set of external expectations with another set. Freeing oneself is not proving you can do just as well as a man, but to refuse to play the game, the rat race, period. Be yourself, be human, don’t be afraid of your blemishes, we all have them, they are not permanent unless you worry about them.