Psychology Today

Often people assume that with close to four decades of women having entered the workforce, we’ve arrived. Haven’t we given enough attention to this gender problem at work?

Women and men can be perceived as members of two distinct and separate subcultures within a larger, more general culture.

Women interpret both message channels, verbal and nonverbal, when assigning meaning to the message as a whole.

Think about your top three screening factors for your incoming and outgoing messages. How might they impact your ability to listen to others and to respond appropriately?

Only during the last two or three decades have we finally arrived at a new consciousness of the way sex-role socialization has limited our style of expression in public speaking.

What implication does this have for handling everyday conflict at work (financial costs, lack of promotion and career progress, acting out resentment in indirect ways such as passive-aggressive behavior, and inferior decision making)?

Many organizations ask themselves where the line is between “none of our business” and “hurts our business.”

Many of us would like to think that our personal and professional lives are separate. Our work life seems to be a parallel universe filled with coworkers and casual relationships with acquaintances.

A single behavior can have multiple meanings in different cultures and can get us in trouble! For instance, the ring gesture (the circle created by the thumb touching the index finger) with which Americans convey “Okay,” means “You are a zero” in France and Belgium.

The ability to decode nonverbal cues is ultimately valuable and essential for effective communication. So women must ask themselves, how can we use these skills to enhance our effectiveness instead of letting them divert us? Women must not focus on others for a definition of what is “normal” or acceptable behavior; they must define it for themselves.

Society conditions women to think they are the emotional gender. Women are taught a separate set of rules that allow a wider range of self-expression. Women aren’t as good at hiding their facial expressions; you can often read them like a book (helpful when women say they’re “fine” but feel the opposite). With men, it’s more of a guessing game.

“You have a woman boss? Oh no, I feel for you. I had a woman boss once, and it was terrible.” Heard those words before? Why would someone feel that way about having a woman boss? Who would you rather work for, a man or a woman? Most men say they’d rather work for a man. And most women say the same thing. . How can that be?

The male leader’s communication skills follow suit. Men tend to be direct, forceful, and assertive. Male leaders don’t whine, they have a strong, deep voice and speak loudly when needed. The masculine leadership style is authoritative, hierarchical, and structured.

Are men better negotiators than women? On one hand, some may argue that men have a more competitive nature, are more aggressive, understand how to use power to their advantage, and appear more business savvy than women. On the other hand, others may argue women bring the relational aspect into a negotiation and look to create a win-win for both parties.