Should women “think like a man” in the workplace? 

According to the wise words of “Bic” (for an advert to commemorate - wait for it - Women's Day), us women should “Look like a girl, act like a lady, think like a man, work like a boss”. Yeah. Okay. Naturally, it didn’t sit well with most folks, and thanks to the uproar that ensued, the post was taken down. Before long Bic’s PR team were on damage control alert, resulting in a measly Facebook apology. They claimed that the quote itself was taken from a “Women in Business” blog site. As if that justified their “mistake”.

At the risk of veering off topic - I’m not your typical bra burning feminist, but we can all agree that the advert is ridiculously sexist. Asking women to “look like a girl” blurs the thin line between sexualising children and man's infatuation with women who look like prepubescent girls. We don’t have to “act like a lady” either. Why does society constantly need to police women's behaviour? Finally, “Work like a boss” - We all know bosses are terrible workers. So. You'd think Bic would have learnt their lesson after the pens designed for women fiasco. But obviously not.

Regrettably, sexism and gender stereotyping are omnipresent. From first world countries to third world countries, Fortune 500 companies to startups, and the streets, there’s literally no escape route. And so, the Bic post brought back into the limelight the elephant in the room - that women feel the need to replicate characteristics of men to forge ahead and gain success.

THINK LIKE A MAN 

Mars and Venus stereotypes have a lot to answer for. In our hunter-gatherer days, “abilities” were divided based on gender. Undoubtedly, the system worked for them. Nevertheless, the stone ages are long gone, our mental capacities have evolved, yet the stereotypes remain, oftentimes enforced in volatile environments such as the workplace. This in turn, has led scores of women to conform to primitive stereotypes of a testosterone fuelled society and assume traditionally 'male' attributes in order to get ahead in the workplace.

So what does “thinking/acting like a man” imply? Does it insinuate that to think like a man is to be logical and objective rather than emotional and subjective? Is acting like a man being assertive, a risk-taker and more focused? Are dominance and aggression the way to go? Having endured years of conditioning, our brains are hardwired to accept these as the perfect embodiment of “masculine” ideals, as if women cannot be focused or men not be aggressive.

If the workplace were metaphorically a jungle, then men would be the undisputed kings of the jungle. This shouldn’t come as a surprise considering the fact that the unwritten rules in workplaces seem to always favour men. The women, on the other hand, find themselves in a catch-22. Females who are ambitious and outspoken are deemed a “b*tch” and are victims of unfortunate reprisals. But with countless women declaring they “think like a man” in order to get ahead, are they inadvertently implying that women do not posses the characteristics that ensures success in the workplace?

A dated stereotype overhaul is long overdue and thankfully, progress, it seems, is on the horizon. Businesses have begun to acknowledge that a marriage of the different traits that men and women possess is actually great for them, and so workplaces are evolving into level playing fields. We are slowly but surely conceding to the knowledge that typical male ‘ideals’ such as aggression and dominance don’t equate success. Instead, self confidence makes a world of difference irrespective of gender.

We asked a few men and women: Should women in the workplace ideally think like men, sometimes, in order to achieve success? Here’s what they had to say:

Roshani Kumarasinghe 

NO, I DON’T BELIEVE THAT WOMEN should mimic men in the workplace. Studies clearly show that women leaders bring a set of skills  -mainly which is empathy - that are more conducive to fostering a productive and harmonious workplace than their male counterparts. While the staple strategy of men is to compete with each other, leading of course to winners and losers, the more inclusive style of women can very well be argued to better fit the 21st century workplace characterized by diversity, individualism and sensitivity. The fact that women have felt pressured to adopt the behavioural and managerial style of men owes more to the continuing male dominance of society generally and the workplace specifically than to men’s ‘chest thumping’ style. So to answer the question, who runs the world? Yes, it’s still men - but, in my opinion, given the chance, women would do an amazing job.

Nimra Savanghan 

Not at all. Women are naturally gifted at managing organisations and creating effective strategies to increase profitability and growth. It begins at home as a wife and mother. (They run a house, and take responsibility to efficiently manage the people who live in it) In fact females also contribute to the success of men. Just ask a (female) personal assistant, wife or a mother.

Sri Rangani Arulmakan 

It is hard to pin down what exactly makes women successful. Linking their success to having thought ‘like a man’ is unfair. On one side of the spectrum, you have women in industries such as farming, fishing, and physical labour – who are struggling to keep up with their male peers. The other side has women who make the right connections and use their wiles to build up a comfortable career and appear successful. I doubt any of the above has anything to with them thinking like men. I think success – that is legit and satisfactory to one’s own perception - results in a combination of adaptability, tolerance, focus, perseverance, and faith in one's own dream and the dedication and determination to achieve it.

Wasaam Ismail 

Nope. Success sometimes depends on understanding the people you deal with. They should put themselves in the shoes of others regardless of their gender. People skills are very important to be successful in a work environment. There is a lot to do with internal and external stakeholders, Inter departmental coordination, dealing with external parties such as vendors / media organisations / clients etc. and also you get internal and external politics. To stay ahead and stay successful it's not about thinking like a man. It's about thinking like the people you deal with.

Eranga Fernando 

Well, I think the question is thinking logically to accomplish something or be successful at something,  is what they should do. I feel like this is something people just say that has no logic behind it, unless you can explain or be specific about what "thinking like a man" really means. It's hard to be specific because the term "thinking like a man" can be interpreted differently. Everyone should think in a successful manner if they want to be successful. If thinking like a man (whatever it means) helps them be successful, then why not? That is unless thinking in any other way would help you be more successful.

By Rihaab Mowlana