Tag: male

  • How to Use the Rachel Letter To End Swamp Wars

    In the season 3 finale and the season 4 premier of Friends, Ross and Rachel decide to get back together.  But Rachel has one condition – she writes Ross a long letter in which she describes everything that went wrong with the relationship and Ross has to accept full responsibility.  Ross, anxious to get back together with Rachel lies and says he read the letter – twice – and agrees to everything in the letter.  As he learns what he agreed to he is unable to keep up the charade.  Ross finally comes clean and admits that he fell asleep reading the letter – it was 18 pages long – front and back!

    Women understand Rachel’s letter.  It is a pure pink female masterpiece – long, citing every incident no matter how trivial in exacting detail.

    Believe it or not our ability to write these types of letters comes in handy when working with men.  I have written several business “Rachel letters.”  It is one of the few times I get to venture towards the Pink end of the spectrum and frolic in my female characteristics with abandon.       (more…)

  • Understanding Baby Boomer Men And Their Drive For Status

    Baby boomer men make up most of the senior management ranks. As a baby boomer myself, I grew up with these men and know what they were taught. We were raised with a societal framework that shaped our expectations for our lives.

    It is important, especially for younger generations, to understand baby boomers because they have driven our society and businesses to where we are now – driven to achieve status above all else.         (more…)

  • The Great American Alligator Slayer

    I first wrote about the Great American Alligator Slayer © in 1991.  I got the idea from thinking about how I was told to distinguish myself and get ahead at work.  It is a very male concept.Alligator Slayer

    As a woman, you don’t want to embrace this concept for yourself but it is important to understand it because it is still relevant.  In a humorous way it explains what your male peers may be aspiring to.

    As I often talk about, the male workplace produces a slew of problems and crises it must deal with and make go away.  If we go back to the old analogy and equate problems to alligators, a company that is plagued with problems is “up to its waist in alligators.”  So what do they do?

    They hire – The Great American Alligator Slayer! (more…)

  • How To Use The Power Seat

    I introduced the concept of the power seat and told you how to find it in your conference room in my article Understanding the Power Seat.  Now it is time to learn how to use it so you can take lead a discussion and lead your collegues to better solutions. (more…)

  • How Men Are Taught To Solve Problems

    From the example on the “Your Best Leverage” page, poor Bob has to build a wall but has no material.  There is a crisis!  And in the male workplace that is a cry for action!  But will the male approach really solve the crisis or just lead to new problems?

    Let’s look at how the guys solve the problem: (more…)

  • Understanding The Power Seat

    One of the most difficult things for most women to do is get their ideas heard when they are in a room full of men.  Men can be loud and assertive, if not aggressive, in order to shut down the ideas of others.   At the extreme a discussion can turn into nothing more than a competition to see who will win – where the original objective – to find the best solution – is lost.

    What is a woman to do in these situations?  Can she get all of this ruckus back on track?

    YES!!  (more…)