Being a young female professional often comes with certain unnecessary challenges.

Chief among them being that people often don’t expect you to be intelligent, or to understand when you’re being taken advantage of, or don’t expect you to hold people accountable when decisions are made with a lack of integrity.

Covert disrespect and passive-aggressive jockeying are rampant in today’s workplace. I’ve experienced it on some level in just about every job I’ve had.

One of my guiding philosophies in recent years has been: What would a 60-year-old man do? Most 60-year-old men I know don’t take any B.S. from anyone and are respected as a result.

It doesn’t sound politically correct, but I’m sure my fellow peers will agree that, in general, 60-year-old men in the workplace are not challenged, dismissed, marginalized, invalidated, ignored, or disrespected at the same level of intensity that young women are.

Traditional leadership advice tells women to turn off their emotions, toughen up, and basically have a sex change of character in order to be taken seriously and be able to “play with the boys.” That gives credence to the thought that the workplace is not an equal, level playing field, but is, in fact, set up to favor the alpha-male personalities. If you can’t change yourself into something that acts like an alpha male, then you’re not worthy.

That advice strips women of their innate wisdom and power, and creates animosity, pitting women against each other as they vie for recognition and the chance to have their work validated.

I am, of course, making sweeping generalities. Not all men marginalize women in the workplace. Some aren’t too picky and just treat everyone beneath their authority with equal disregard. I’ve sat in meetings where the youngest male staffer not present gets thrown under the bus for all the faults of a project. I’ve also personally experienced the office politics of females who, in their mind, feel that any recognition you receive automatically devalues them and therefore, they work to discredit you.

On the other hand, there are generous and wise mentors of all genders who have taught me valuable lessons.

I was recently inspired to think more on that topic after reading The Alpena News article by Julie Riddle about local women in criminal justice careers.

When humans were all living in the tribal, indigenous wild, there were real threats like rudimentary tools and weapons, carnivorous beasts, poisoned food sources, weather, and insufficient shelter. Communities were tightly bound together with the strengths of each individual playing an important role in the preservation of the human race.

We should no longer be living as if everything is an outside threat. It seems that the fight or flight response, the lizard brain, continues to create conflict where none needs to exist. We’re shortchanging our species as a result.

It is a curious thing, the human nature of affixing labels, placing people in categories, reacting to perceived threats with self-preservation tactics and creating competition where there should be collaboration. In the end, those things only drain energy and take away from the best possible outcome.

Unless your job requires you to be of a specific age and gender, those things should have no place in the regular interaction of the workplace.

Shouldn’t we want everyone to work to their strengths?

Shouldn’t we be OK with the success of others?

Why don’t we all treat others as we want to be treated?

When will we look at our colleagues and see strengths and appreciate unique characteristics, instead of reacting in ways that work to discredit and marginalize?

Back to my original philosophy: What would a 60-year-old man do?

I think I need to start asking myself: What would I do if I stopped listening to all the people that try to keep a lid on me? What would I do if I stopped accepting disrespect from others? What would happen if I stand up for myself when people push me around? What if I started acknowledging the disrespectful behavior directed toward me and said, “Nope. I won’t accept that. Try again.”

For any young women reading this note, I hope you shine in your own light. I hope you shine so brightly that it brings awareness to our dark corners.

There will be many who try to cut down your wick so you won’t last, steal your wax for their own fuel, and blow you out because they are afraid you’ll outshine them. That is not what you are here for. You are a descendant of generations of trailblazing pioneers. Women who have fought to be equal — to be able to own land, vote, work in male-dominated professions, and fight for their country. People have died for our right to be treated with equality. Let’s make our ancestors proud.

Mary Beth Stutzman’s “Inspiring A-Town” runs monthly. Follow Mary Beth on Twitter @mbstutz.