The business world is an interesting place for females. With the advances made with women’s rights over the last 50 plus years things are getting closer to equality than ever before. So why do some women feel they still have to act like a man in business to be taken seriously? 
Probably for good reason. Equality is closer but the old boys’ club still exists. Question is, do we have to act more like men to be respected by them? I say no, and while there are some stereotypical traits to female and male style management, it’s more about understanding how your skills and personality are best used to do business than trying to act like one sex or the other. Let me explain. For 2000 years, men have been told to follow orders, and when moving to a position of authority, to make decisions and give orders. In the modern business environment, a man’s style still tends to be direct, getting straight to the point, giving or receiving information and then making a choice. A woman’s style of doing business is to talk about things at greater length, discussing how things could work and her feelings on the project. A woman tends to ask questions like “What do you think about this?” and she loves to be asked this question herself. Women can often decide they need to become tough, disconnected and mean in order to be successful in business. Nothing could be further from the truth! Women can be great manipulators in business; they can make things go the way they wish and bring everyone else along happily with their ideas and plans. For women, looking to stereotypes as the guide for how to be in business can cause them to believe they are less able to lead in business and to discount themselves and their own talents. For men, the pressures of appearing knowledgeable and powerful can create destructive business habits. Ultimately, creating expectations and judgements of how you should do business based on sex is a very limited approach and there are other things you can do which will make it a lot easier and far more productive. 1. Give up any judgements of yourself in regards to business. There truly is no right or wrong way to do business. There is what works for you, and what doesn’t work (irrelevant of whether you’re a man or woman). I have this crazy point of view that business should be joyful, and if it isn’t, it’s time to change something! 2. Ask yourself “How do I like to do business? More like a woman or a man?” Some women enjoy doing business more like a man, and some men naturally do business more like a woman. Just make sure you’re behaving in a way that’s aligned to who you are. It won’t work if you’re pretending to be someone or something you’re not. 3. Use these simple question to help your business deals and relationships become easier and more fruitful:
- Does this person do business like a man or a woman?
- What do they require?
- What would make this business deal/project be created with ease?
At the end of the day, you are a unique being with talents and capacities no one else has. If you are willing to give up judging yourself or expecting yourself to do business like other people, you can begin to make choices that will expand your business with far greater ease. And have a lot more joy in the process!
