They don't get the balancing act involved in simultaneously running an office and a home. They don't care to even get a whiff that you have a sick child on the phone crying for you and don't want to hear you give the nanny instructions on the medicine she needs to administer in your absence.
No matter how 'together' you may sound or appear during the overheard phone calls of you managing your personal life from the corner office cubicle, your boss or even male colleague will think less of you on some level.
Women, albeit bitchier to work for and with, get the hustle that the fairer sex has to do on a daily basis and can find some fellow girl power respect even for their office nemesis where holding down a high pressure career and managing a family are concerned.
Where a female boss is likely to be empathetic to your frustration about being late because your nanny didnt pitch for work, your male boss will sit you down and lecture you about not being focused on your job.
We are different on so many levels and most definitely do business very differently,so why is there no handbook for women to survive the male boss?
I searched and searched online for tips on keeping the 'suited caveman' happy and found articles on: 'How to Manage your Career when you are Sleeping with your Boss', How to Survive Working with Women' and 'How to Successfully use your Breast-Pump at Work.' None of which acknowledge the difficulty that X and Y chromosomes sharing office space create.
Having run my own business and done business with mainly women, I can testify that we are far nicer, understanding and logical creatures to do work with..but it would seem that according to Google, I'm on my own.
Working Girl's Survival Guide to Managing the Male Boss:
1. Good interpersonal skills are key. But not the touchy, feely ones. Communicating effectively with a man, especially at work is all about taking emotion out of the sentence. He doesn't want to know how you feel about something.
2. If he happens to ask you a personal question to be polite, such as, "How are the kid?" Keep your answer very short. He doesnt really want to know but he is trying to be nice. Dont open yourself up for him to interrupt you with work issues because you have been rambling about your kids. A simple, " They're well thanks, how are yours" will do.
3. Dont talk on your personal phone or even text when you are dealing one on one with him. He wants to feel important at all times and taking a personal call will nullify that feeling for him.
4. When dealing with personal issues around family, do so privately. Hi overhearing about your sick kids or personal crises will make him feel guilty for keeping you at work and will likely lead him to thinking that you are not focuses on work when at work. Rather deal with the issue on the quiet unless its an emergency that warrants leaving work, then of course go to him.
5. Grow a thick skin. Women are more sensitive to body language and temperament and often take read to deeply into antisocial behaviors or take it personally. Men on the other hand, under stress may become more aggressive or impatient. Staying calm and getting through the shit storm may be the best way to navigate through it.
No comments:
Post a Comment