I love trivia. The more random “useless” facts I have clogging up my brain the better. I just seem to soak them up like a sponge. I thought I would share some with you. Be that person who at the coffee break at work just throws out some random interesting fact, that I will admit sometimes gets a strange stare in response, but usually leads to a ‘huh, I had no idea, how do you know this stuff?’

My immediate thoughts were of the male/female dynamic when it comes to chivalry. The man feeling like a man when he is in position to take care of and protect the weak. Before you get upset with me for claiming women are “weak,” for the sake of conversation let’s agree that “weak” is not a negative quality. Maybe “vulnerable” is a better choice of words.

“You know you are way too nice,” he said. “You should yell more. How will your team respect you if you don’t yell at them.”

At the time I didn’t understand this. When he said it to me, I looked at him and said, “I don’t feel the need to yell at them. I have my own ways of getting results by treating them as equals and projecting an air of authority by being calm and in control. You don’t have to yell to be in charge.”

Now that I’ve started researching the differences between the masculine and feminine approaches to management, I understand his reaction better. The male approach is a single-focused, target oriented, hierarchical way of thinking. It doesn’t take more feminine factors like feeling, connection, emotion, and community into account.