Opinion: From ‘Late Night’ to Google: Are talented women their own worst enemy?

“Why don’t we have more female stand-up comedians?�

The radio was buzzing Monday morning about that question, still brewing after Stephen Colbert’s much-deserved ascension to host of “Late Night.�

Now, I’m all for more women running the show everywhere (including this nation — are you listening, Hillary Rodham Clinton?), but in a week in which the nation’s elite colleges are releasing snapshots of their newly admitted classes, I wonder if the question on the radio shouldn’t be:

“How many of you accomplished young women will head toward computer science, tech, finance or business — where scholarships, mentoring, internships and well-paid jobs (and, some would say, true decision-making careers) really exist?�

Nothing against funny women, but what about women in charge in this 21st century world of ours?

As the guy at Google who does the hiring (about 100 jobs a week!), told the New York Times’ Thomas L. Friedman over the weekend:

“The first thing Google looks for is ‘general cognitive ability — the ability to learn things and solve problems.’ … I’m not saying you have to be some terrific coder, but … you have to be able to think in a formal and logical and structured way.… I told [a prospective intern] they are much better off being a B student in computer science than an A+ student in English because it signals a rigor in your thinking and a more challenging course load.�

Sure, there’s progress:

“We are starting to see a shift,� Telle Whitney, president of the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology, explained to the San Francisco Chronicle, which added that UC Berkeley, Stanford and a handful of other universities have experienced an uptick in the number of female computer science students, coinciding with a re-imagining of computer science classes, especially introductory ones.

But we (all) have to be open to it too.

Recently, as I drove some high school students to a speech and debate tournament, several of the girls told me they “liked math and science.� Great, I responded. “So you’re thinking about a tech-type major or career?�

Oh no, I was told, “we’re not that good at math.�

Oh. I thought that sort of self-deprecating thinking had ended with my generation (as this journalist was ruefully reminded, lunching recently with her still-inspiring 90-year-old high school biology teacher.)

Hillary Clinton has seen it from both sides, as Times staffer Maeve Reston wrote the other day:

“Too many young women are harder on themselves than circumstances warrant,� said Clinton.... “Whenever I would say to a young woman, ‘I want you to do this. I want you to take on this extra responsibility. I want you to move up,’ almost invariably they would say ‘Do you think I can?’ or ‘Do you think I’m ready?’�

“When I’ve asked a young man if he wants to move up, he goes: ‘How high?’ ‘How fast?’ ‘When do I start?’ ... There is just a hesitancy still about women’s worth and women’s work that we’re going to have to continue to address.�

So, women of the Class of 2018 — as they say in Comedy Improv, it’s never “No, but.�

The response that keeps you going is always “Yes, and!�

Go for it.

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Sara Lessley is a freelance journalist and editing coach in Los Angeles.