What does the world think about female bosses?

I recently did a Google search for the keywords “bosses” and to my amazement, the search results returned a page full of titles emancipating the negative vibe of female bosses and their leadership style, for example, “Do we hate female bosses?”, “Employees prefer male bosses to women”, or worse, “female bosses are a nightmare” and many more. I was struck by the mindset that the Internet, the entire world population, is enlightening. Why is it that this type of titles proliferate and gain space on the screens? Is it just the stereotypical preconceived notion that portrays female bosses in an undeserved and somewhat demeaning way or is there a real gap in women’s leadership style? What really drives the stigma towards female C-suite bosses?

Today’s workplaces have a decent mix of nearly equal numbers of male and female employees at the mid-level. That also implies that many female employees are also contributing in the polls and considering them superior male leaders to female leaders could indicate that there is more than a preconceived notion.

Another survey conducted to rank leaders on some leadership qualities, such as communication, organization, and listening skills, reveals that female bosses score higher than their male counterparts. So what went wrong when it comes to gaining popularity? When employees rate female bosses higher in terms of caliber, what could be the reason they prefer not to have them as their own boss? Is there something we can do to change the mentality or rather is there something we can improve in our leadership? What are those extra qualities of male leaders that set them apart and that we can learn from?

The unsavory search results made me curious to learn more about what women bosses are doing differently, if not incorrectly, that their subordinates or colleagues don’t feel connected to. I scoured the Internet and asked many of my friends and colleagues about their experiences working with a manager. The plurality of them expressed a desire to return to work with their previous bosses, however, a staggering number of participants, both employees and women, also yielded a variety of convictions.

Some of those conspicuous comments are mentioned here:

They lack confidence It is highlighted that the bosses not only show a lack of confidence in themselves but also in their subordinates, especially in the employees, at work.

They micromanage: In most cases, micromanagement presents an image of a manager who mistrusts his employees. It suffocates employees and makes them doubt their own merits.

Sometimes they indulge in gossip: Employees also noted that they have watched their bosses fall for gossip on many occasions. They also expressed that they find such behavior immature, false and inferior.

They are rarely emotionally balanced: Many of the employees revealed that they had rarely encountered a female manager who was emotionally balanced and that most of them were bossy and strict or too friendly and biased. Female bosses were blamed for being alone at either end of the emotional distance spectrum.

They shiver when it comes to making difficult decisions: Female managers tend to be more indecisive compared to male managers when a decision has to be made such as firing an employee or choosing one over the other.

They cannot work without tutoring: Women leaders lack independent decision-making capacity. They constantly seek guidance and advice from their mentor(s). She makes female managers look less confident.

These were the comments extracted during the investigation. Here is a good opportunity for us to consider these feedback as “areas for improvement” so that we can plan and act to rectify these gaps. It is true that those criticisms are also valid for male managers, but now that they have also been attributed to female managers, let’s work together to improve them.

To strengthen our abilities, we could pay attention to the following:

Be yourself

Confidence in your body language will radiate more when you are yourself. Stand firm when you think you’re right and be legendary enough to admit your own mistake when you’re wrong. When you feel comfortable with yourself, you inherently make a connection with the crowd. When it happens, other employees will identify with you and look up to you.

Be supportive of other employees at work.

One of the most desirable qualities of a leader is making others empowered and self-reliant. Your co-workers consider you their role model. Strengthen their trust in you and reassure them with your support and guidance. Make sure they are heard and properly compensated.

Lead by example

The best way to instill confidence in others is to spread from within. Give your peers something to emulate you. First set the example and let them follow you. A culture can be reinforced, not imposed.

be a people manager

Being a people manager means that you need to start spending time with your employees to learn about their personal backgrounds, hidden talents, strengths, weaknesses, limitations, and obligations. If you know their other, non-professional side of life, it would be easier for you to help them with their professional career, connect with them and understand them better. There could be many organizational events that could allow you to get acquainted with these curiosities. Focus more on cultivating an environment that is approachable, cooperative, and supportive rather than just competitive.

Stop micromanaging and start delegating

Never let your employees get the impression that you underestimate their abilities. Micromanaging helps nurture that atmosphere. So get rid of that and learn the art of delegating instead. Let your employees find a way to complete a task because that’s how they learn. Assign them a mentor, if necessary. Keeping track of your employee’s every move will strengthen a feeling of cynicism between them. Your goal should be to empower them, not micromanage them.

Stop indulging in depreciating behavior

Stay away from any act that seems demeaning and belittling. And gossip is one of those. First, it makes you look unsophisticated, and second, your employees find you untrustworthy because if you’re doing it for one, you might as well do it for others. Get rid of these negative traits, as it doesn’t do your character or yourself any good.

Empower yourself to make tough decisions

It is a fact that female leaders tend to be more emotional than rational, and this predilection is attributed to their innate characteristics. They easily worry about negative repercussions, intended or not, for employees. Decisions like firing an employee or being unbiased in appraisals can seem callous and cause a sleepless night for a female boss, while a male manager would seem comparatively more accommodating at such times. When dealing with such scenarios, you must not forget your role in the organization. For example, before laying off occasional employees, consider how to use them in any other vertical or team, and if you can’t find a place for them, remind yourself that you are a manager first and do what is good for the organization. . However, you can always make sure that his decisions don’t force an employee to take an unceremonious exit. It’s definitely a tough choice, but your rationality and toughness right now will pay off not only for you, but for your organization and that employee in the long run. You must be tough on decisions but soft on approach.

He adopts a personality between authoritarian and social.

In their rush to be heard and obeyed, women leaders take one of two sides of the sociability spectrum. On the one hand, when they are friendly and submissive, they foster an environment of fun, excitement, and excitement. Employees working under such leadership feel that they are heard and that their leader cares about their dreams and career path. However, this person brings her own disadvantages. She sometimes fails to draw a line between friendliness and professionalism. At the other end of the spectrum, when women leaders become strict, they promote a fearful and stressed environment. Although they do the work, but in the long term, the bond between the leader and the employees would diminish, and gradually the subordinates would rather leave the project or the workplace forever. That is why you must be discreet with the personality that you are reflecting to your employees.

know your limitations

Being an inherently caring and caring nature, female employers and bosses sometimes enter a phase where they want to make the work environment a haven for their employees. Well, first you have to understand that “you can’t make everyone happy at the same time”. This also implies that you, like everyone else, also have your limits. Sometimes, whatever you do, your employees will never be satiated and will continue to demand more and more. You have the bigger picture of the organization. You better know what you can do for them and what you can’t. Do not go beyond your border and never regret it. You must find a happy medium between the concerns of the employee and the capabilities of the organization. After a cutoff, you may need to spend time having a frank conversation with your employees to remind them that their concerns are well considered and addressed and should be matched with their work, productivity, and innovations.

Know when you don’t need a mentor

Everyone needs a mentor in his life to learn the tactics of a particular field, but after a certain period he must be self-sufficient and independent. Maintain self-control so you don’t fall into a pattern of constantly seeking mentors. Trust your intuitions, be confident and learn from experiences.

Be a catalyst in changing people’s mentality towards women leaders and their leadership style. There are no days left before the search results reverberate in positive headlines. We are already good, let’s fight to be better!