Emotional describes someone who has shown a valid human response to a situation. This word is often misused to describe emotionally intelligent women in the workplace. There is a well-documented history of women being labelled as âemotionalâ and âhystericalâ and therefore not equipped to lead.
Even presidential candidates fear being judged as emotional:
âItâs a really delicate balancing actâto be yourself, to express yourself, to let your feelings show, but not in a way that triggers all of the negative stereotypes.â âHillary Clinton
After a difficult client meeting, Jane became emotional. One of her male colleagues rolled his eyes and the other went over to see if she was okay.
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Cute is a demeaning way to describe a woman who is approachable and endearing. Unlike small children, fluffy toys and puppies, professional women rarely appreciate being called cute. Cute implies that someone is adorable and sweetâqualities that people associate with women due to societyâs ingrained expectation of how women should look and act.
Her male colleague called her âso cuteâ and she reflected on how he would react if she had called him that.
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Bubbly is used to describe a woman who is outgoing, friendly and funny. Rather than using those words (as you would for a man), saying âbubblyâ is a way to subtly demean these admirable qualities in a woman.
Bubbly is best used to describe a bottle of champagne rather than a female colleagueâs personality. Gendered language can affect womenâs confidence and ability to be themselves in the workplace.
He stopped using the word bubbly to describe his female colleagues, when he learned it was a consolation-prize compliment.
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Dramatic is used to describe a woman who expresses passion or enthusiasm for a subject or situation. It plays into the stereotype that women are oversensitive and dramatise situations due to their inability to think rationally.
In the Nike âDream Crazierâ campaign Serena Williams expressed, âWhen we show emotion, weâre dramaticâ calling out how women competing at a high level canât show their dedication to their sport in the same way that men can.
At first, he thought she was being dramatic, but then he realised she just had a lot of enthusiasm for the job.
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When applied to a woman, difficult relates to the idea that women are impractical for having high expectations for themselves and others. When we call a woman difficult, we could be saying: âSheâs asking me to challenge myself and Iâm not comfortable with a woman doing thatâ. Words like decisive or determined are more positive ways to describe female colleagues.
He noticed that his female colleague didnât live to please others. Instead of labelling her a âdifficult womanâ, he respected her ability to say no.
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Sassy is used to describe women who are quick-witted and clever. Instead of praising these qualities, which are celebrated in men, people are often quick to undermine women for stepping outside of their âlaneâ with sarcastic and quirky comments.
He wondered why his female colleague didnât laugh when he called her âsassy pantsâ.
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Feisty is a condescending way to describe a woman who has an opinion and is determined to achieve her goals.
Itâs uncommon for CIS men to be described as âfeistyâ due to societyâs unconscious bias towards how men and women should act. In their guide to improving the media coverage of females, the Womenâs Media Centre lists âfeistyâ as one of the words that should be avoided, describing it as ânormally reserved for individuals that are not inherently powerfulâ.
He realised feisty is a sexist term and praised his female colleague for being driven instead.
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