Woman or Human?
A couple of days ago, I was seated with some business executives who were saying that women executives are wired differently from men executives, in that they are more emotional and reactive. I was silent in that discussion because I just wasn’t sure.
This morning, I had the opportunity of dealing with two women executives who are completely different. One, handled a very dicey situation very strategically and logically and it was resolved within minutes. The other, shocked me in that in a situation where she could have been more tactful, she simply dealt with the situation badly.
The said situation arose out of an anomaly from her staff, and when this was put to her, she simply lashed out defensively at everyone involved, then when several different people objectively pointed out to her the situation, she simply lashed out some more.
This morning, I came into the office and said good morning and she would not respond. This is a senior leader of the organization, by the way. She simply would not speak to me.
I got thinking about that discussion, days back and I thought, could it be true? Or is it more a personality issue? I generally prefer to think that women and men in business are or can be just a tough and smart and there are women to proove it.
I also prefer to think that problem solving skills are a personality rather than a gender issue. But I wonder whether that is my idealism at play?
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November 7, 2006 at 11:37 am
“I’ve learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.” Maya Angelou
November 7, 2006 at 1:07 pm
It is true that women have the general tendency to overeact in certain tense situations or periods in their life and fly off the handle.
However it is not true that just because that is the expected norm they should live by it.
Personality is a work in progress maybe we should all check into the psyche ward from time to time just to ensure were not too wound up.
November 8, 2006 at 8:54 am
Women handle things differently.An attack on a woman’s work is handled as an attack to her personality.
But all the same, it is a bit immature to handle your situation the way she did.
November 8, 2006 at 2:07 pm
I believe it has nothing to do with gender and everything to do with personality and also self esteem and confidence in oneself. I do think these things can be learned or unlearned.
In any case, it is too simplistic to say that all women react to a situation the same way.
November 9, 2006 at 9:51 am
I agree that it has everything to do with self esteem and confidence. There are women who’ve managed not maintain themselves in very stressful situations. Maybe she’s going through something else that’s very serious… usually people overreact to situations when there is something else the matter.
Lilian I like the suggestion that once in a while… we need to do a loose check up. We should also read “Veronica decides to die” by Paulo Coelho and realize there is a very thin line between sanity and insanity.
November 9, 2006 at 9:55 am
dear al
love reading your blog and the poetry e-books are such a brilliant idea for showcasing talent..
i think a while back you mentioned you were taking entries for the next colour series, “red” and i was wondering if it’s too late to submit?
i would like to submit some poetry and if it’s not too late, where do i send it?
thanks and keep up the brilliant work.
:)m
November 12, 2006 at 9:33 pm
I think women do handle things differently – and emotions do play a big part. However, it does not mean that women are not as good at problem solving as men. By the way, some men do lash out just the same.
December 16, 2006 at 3:33 pm
hey its not all women who are emotional..as in its depends on how people deal with problems and am sure there are men who do the same too..but i agree with you not commenting on it b’cause one can’t judge all just with one person..we are all different