Why is it confident women appear arrogant? Is it that they often are arrogant instead? Do they intend to use provocation or are they truly unaware? How do women actually manage to show their confidence and not seem brash?
I was sitting on a sofa, next to a stranger – a sofa that was designed for two people – waiting for a meeting when a woman stood between us clearly wanting to sit down but without actually saying anything. We shuffled apart, she sat down, pulled out a crumbly baguette and began eating her breakfast with the baguette paper bag being pulled down longer as she ate and flicking me at each bite. She moved her handbag from under her feet and put it on my feet to reinforce the fact I must clearly have been invisible to her although we spoke later in the day and there wasn't any animosity towards me so I'll have to presume she didn't know that she what she had done could be considered rude.
Throughout the day she pushed to be at the front of the group at every opportunity and openly complained about the lunch menu at a very exclusive restaurant giving us the detail on why she wasn't willing to eat what was on offer. It does seem that a confident woman is more likely to act this way that a confident man.
She was a journalist and her industry and workplace probably has to have a 'no nonsense' approach. Maybe those everyday niceties are not everyday in her normal working life but surely we can all adjust? People who work in noisy factories, who need to yell to speak to a colleague, are quite capable of quietly asking for the salt across the dinner table after work so I suspect it's a type of person who exudes these discourteous tendencies rather than being a product of their environment. Or is it that a man can be considered charming when confident and women have not yet learnt how to use their confidence without trampling over others? A controversial statement but worth considering. Maybe we need more excellent female role models in all industries to demonstrate how to act and to show that respecting others is not a weakness.
I haven't yet mentioned that this female journalist was not English so this could have been a cultural difference but the group were a mix of nationalities and others knew when to adapt so I don't think it can be used as an excuse.
Do you have any thoughts on how women can be respected while not being downtrodden, which is what seems to be these brash women's fear? No-one is trying to belittle them but first impressions do count and walking over others is not a long-term way to get ahead in life.
Throughout the day she pushed to be at the front of the group at every opportunity and openly complained about the lunch menu at a very exclusive restaurant giving us the detail on why she wasn't willing to eat what was on offer. It does seem that a confident woman is more likely to act this way that a confident man.
She was a journalist and her industry and workplace probably has to have a 'no nonsense' approach. Maybe those everyday niceties are not everyday in her normal working life but surely we can all adjust? People who work in noisy factories, who need to yell to speak to a colleague, are quite capable of quietly asking for the salt across the dinner table after work so I suspect it's a type of person who exudes these discourteous tendencies rather than being a product of their environment. Or is it that a man can be considered charming when confident and women have not yet learnt how to use their confidence without trampling over others? A controversial statement but worth considering. Maybe we need more excellent female role models in all industries to demonstrate how to act and to show that respecting others is not a weakness.
I haven't yet mentioned that this female journalist was not English so this could have been a cultural difference but the group were a mix of nationalities and others knew when to adapt so I don't think it can be used as an excuse.
Do you have any thoughts on how women can be respected while not being downtrodden, which is what seems to be these brash women's fear? No-one is trying to belittle them but first impressions do count and walking over others is not a long-term way to get ahead in life.
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