Diversity in Women Leaders: Bully, Colleague, or Mentor?

Q. Recently I attended my first conference for women in business. There were hundreds of women in attendance, and I was able to meet many other business owners.? We discussed several business challenges that we all face. I was surprised at how women approached other women and the diverse mindsets from both their perspectives and the speakers. Some women were humble, sincere listeners, and supportive of others; others were aggressive, arrogant, entitled, and rude!?Why the gaping difference?

A. You nailed it.? We live in a diverse world, and diversity (of multiple kinds) runs the gamut! As a business owner for over 25 years, I didn’t choose to work with only one gender, but most senior executives were male 20 to 30 years ago, and I've worked with many more men. There were a few women managers. Some were leaders in tough environments (predominantly male cultures in military, defense, and semiconductor industries.) Some women managers are bullies who instill fear in men and women (because they are not aware they bully, learned that behavior, are focused on making their mark in the world at any cost, or are full of internal fear and insecurity.) Others flounder as they constantly try to please others.

Leadership is tough! Great leaders continually work to improve both their self-awareness and the process of developing and leading people around them. Men and women who want to develop and accelerate their leadership seek coaches over time to develop their self-awareness; communication and messaging; and deeper leadership capacity (systems and statistical thinking, knowledge of psychology and communication diffusion.)

Having a position/title or being smart doesn't make you a leader!

Leaders and those with positional power (executives or managers who may not actually be leaders) may be smart in their field (medical, engineering, accounting, etc.) That doesn't mean they understand anything about leading and developing people--even though they need to.

In a diverse world, we will meet all kinds of people. Don’t try to put people in boxes and silos. Women and men need to work together. Search for the value that every person can contribute. Guiding natural leaders to foster more respect as your foundation, will lead to better communication, collaboration, and solving problems together. Then everyone can make a difference!

Originally first posted on https://www.mdaszko.com/