“Do I belong here?”
“Can I show up as myself?”
“I don’t see people like me in leadership. Am I even welcome?”

We’ve heard these questions before. For years, they came from women trying to find their footing in workplaces built for someone else. Women who learned that confidence could be read as “bossy,” ambition as “aggressive,” and authenticity as “a little much” or “unprofessional.”

Lately, though, the voices asking those same questions sound different. They’re deeper, more resonant. They’re coming from men. 

And that changes everything.

Origin Story, Meet Plot Twist

When Catalyst invited us to join their upcoming International Men’s Day conversation, The Space Between Us: Supporting Men at Work, the timing could not have been better. The session will explore how creating safer, more supportive environments for men helps everyone, because when men can show up authentically, it builds trust, inclusion, and healthier workplaces for all.

For us, it feels like a full-circle moment. Catalyst, the same organization that co-authored Women and the MBA: Gateway to Opportunity, the study that inspired Forté’s founding, is now leading a conversation about men and belonging. Back then, the question was why women weren’t showing up in business school or in leadership roles. Today, it’s why men sometimes don’t feel they can show up at all.

That isn’t a reversal. It’s evolution. The work of equity is expanding.

Gender: Handle With Care

Let’s be honest. This isn’t the easiest time to talk about gender. The conversation sparks plenty of passion, but not always much understanding.

For men, that tension shows up in two ways:

First, there’s uncertainty about where they fit. A lot of men believe equity conversations are about advancing everyone but them. Even when they’re invited in, they’re not sure if they’re truly welcome or what they’re supposed to say once they get there.

Second, there’s pressure. The kind that never seems to let up. In a world that still ties masculinity to control, men are juggling impossible standards. Be strong. Be successful. Be sensitive. Be a provider. Be a partner. Be perfect.

They’re trying to do it all, at work and at home, with no real space to just be.

Sound familiar? Yeah, we think so too.

The result is exhaustion and isolation. Action without reflection. Rising burnout, anxiety, even despair.

Who are men supposed to be now?

Meanwhile, Back at the Curriculum…

While Catalyst is prepping their panel, we are knee-deep in revising our Allies for Gender Equity curriculum for the 2025 landscape. The overlap is uncanny.

Catalyst’s new research offered a mirror more than a surprise. Most men want workplaces where empathy and kindness aren’t liabilities, yet many still feel pressure to live up to narrow ideas of masculinity. Add in the mental health data, and the picture sharpens quickly: men are under strain, and very few feel safe saying so.

It sounds familiar. Different decade, different demographic, same theme. Pressure to perform and conform. Fear of vulnerability. Silence in the face of strain.

Revising the curriculum for 2025 is only strengthening our conviction that allyship starts with awareness. Our newest version leans even harder into reflection and practice. It helps people see how power and privilege move through organizations, how allyship is less about perfect words and more about consistent actions, and how inclusion works best when it’s visible and human.

It’s not about finding the right answers. It’s about seeing the whole picture and realizing we’re all in it.

Turns Out, the Space Between Us Is the Point

Maybe this is what progress sounds like. An echo.

The questions we once heard from women are now being voiced by men. Instead of treating that as competition for empathy, we believe it’s proof that inclusion works.

The space between us was never meant to divide. It’s where understanding lives. It’s where we build trust, learn empathy, and recognize that thriving at work is not a zero-sum game.

At Forté, that’s the conversation we want to keep having. Because in the end, the space between us isn’t the problem. It’s the point.