How To Be A Non-Threatening Woman

Sarah Cooper is a writer, comedian and creator of TheCooperReview.com. Her first book, 100 Tricks to Appear Smart in Meetings comes out October 4. Sign up for her free newsletter to get updates. The original post mentioned here can be found at The Cooper Review.

Women in leadership positions are often instructed on how to act so they don’t appear too aggressive or bitchy. Instead of placing the blame on sexist workplace culture or misogynistic employees, these articles tell ladies exactly what they’re doing wrong and how to fix it.

In a recent article titled “9 Non-Threatening Leadership Strategies For Women,” The Cooper Review pokes fun at this media trope, offering some helpful tips (with funny illustrations) to “alter your leadership style to account for the (sometimes) fragile male ego.”

These tips include such tactics as playing dumb, using the word “just” to seem more friendly and if necessary, and donning a mustache to seem more manly (and thus receive more respect). As one section of the piece reads, “Pointing out a mistake is always risky so it’s important to always apologize for noticing the mistake and then make sure that no one thinks you’re too sure about it. People will appreciate your ‘hey what do I know?!’ sensibilities.”

Check out the spot-on article at The Cooper Review.