How to Challenge Gendered Language and Humor

Breaking Stereotypes, One Mile at a Time Last week, I had a car accident. Fortunately, no one was hurt, but the driver’s side of my car was badly damaged. The moment it happened, my first instinct was: It’s my mistake! Even though it wasn’t. That reaction stayed with me long after the accident. But why was I so quick to assume blame? Then it struck me—years of hearing "Women can’t drive" had conditioned me to believe that if an accident happened, I must have been at fault. Haven’t we all heard comments like: "Pucca koi ladki chala rahi hogi" (I am sure a woman is driving) whenever a driver makes an error? These seemingly harmless remarks shape our beliefs, influence our confidence, and reinforce biases. The truth? Driving skills have nothing to do with gender and everything to do with awareness, experience, and control. Yet, biases like these exist in every aspect of life. Whether it’s leadership, decision-making, or career choices, women are often judged based on stereotypes rather than their capabilities. How can we change this? ✅ Challenge the narrative – If you hear someone say "women can’t drive", ask them why they believe that. Let’s replace stereotypes with facts. ✅ Be mindful of language – The words we use create perceptions. Let’s stop using gender as a parameter for competence. ✅ Raise confident individuals – Teach young boys and girls that skills are learned, not inherited based on gender. ✅ Support inclusivity – Whether at work, home, or on the road, respect individuals for their abilities, not outdated notions. It’s time we steer away from biases and drive towards a more progressive, equal world. #BreakTheBias #GenderEquality #Stereotypes #WomenWhoDrive #BiasFreeFuture #ProgressiveMindset

I'm re-watching the last season of 'The Crown' and reliving the rise and fall of Thatcher. To be clear - I'm pretty far left of centre (no surprise there!), and I was among tens of thousands of people who marched against the council tax, bellowing, "Maggie, Maggie, Maggie, out, out, out!" But it is shocking to see gender bias in such explicit action. Not just the bias she faced but her own toward others. The chilling moment when she tells the Queen that she will not be inviting any women to her cabinet because she finds them "too emotional". While the world has moved on and much has changed, I witness daily that internalised misogyny is alive and well. From how we react to and talk about other women, how we cover our true selves, and how we adapt and assimilate masculine-coded leadership styles. What can we do to keep shifting and improving on this?: 👉 Challenge comments when you hear them, even if it is only to repeat it back "You think women are too emotional?". This forces the speaker to have to rationalise and explain themselves. This is often enough for them to hear the bias in their comment. 👉 Make way in your daily meetings for diverse leadership and communication styles. Rather than insisting women speak up more, create a culture where all are invited to speak, taking turns ensuring all voices and opinions are heard. 👉 Catch yourself. When you find yourself triggered by a woman's style, ask yourself if you'd be reacting the same way if they were a man. We are human, and I can't tell you how often I've caught my bias tripping me up. This happens most when I'm relaxed, like watching a news reporter and finding myself about to comment on her hair, choice of clothes, or voice. I can normally catch myself before saying anything, but I am still very ashamed of the thought. 👇 👇 Any other suggestions are welcomed below! #DEI, #diversityandinclusion #genderbias

I’ve got 5 ways you can elevate our organizations out of toxic, outdated gender stereotypes. For years, I navigated professional spaces where women in leadership were subtly, or not so subtly, told to stay in their place. Too often, women who take charge (especially in the workplace) are ridiculed and diminished. It’s a mentality that undercuts the capabilities of female leaders by framing assertiveness as something unnatural for women. Even though we’ve made progress, we continue to allow these stereotypes to dictate our organizations today. How many talented women hold back from leading, contributing, and shaping the future of their companies simply to avoid being labeled as "too bossy" or "too controlling"? These harmful narratives don’t just limit women—they limit the growth of the entire organization. Here’s how we can reshape these outdated narratives: 1. Recognize leadership, not gender, in assessing authority and decision-making abilities. 2. Challenge sexist language and eliminate phrases like "wearing the pants" that reinforce harmful stereotypes. 3. Empower women to lead authentically, ensuring their voices are heard and valued in executive decision-making. 4. Foster a culture of inclusion, where leadership is defined by capability and vision, not by traditional gender roles. 5. Actively support diverse leadership teams, creating environments where different perspectives fuel innovation and growth. Breaking free from these gendered stereotypes isn’t just a moral imperative—it’s a strategic advantage. Diverse leadership teams perform better, innovate more, and foster inclusive company cultures that attract and retain top talent.

“Boys don’t cry,” Have you ever told a boy not to cry? Or asked a girl to be patient and not react? These phrases are so ingrained in our culture that we often don’t think twice before saying them. But what if these seemingly harmless words are doing more harm than good? Just recently, I saw my young neighbor, about eight years old, fall off his bicycle. His knee was scraped, and tears welled up in his eyes. But before they could fall, he quickly wiped them away, trying to be brave. “Boys don’t cry,” he muttered, echoing a message he’s likely heard many times. That moment made me realize how early and deeply these biases are instilled in us. From a young age, boys are taught to be tough, to hide their emotions, and to push through pain without showing weakness. Meanwhile, girls often hear that they need to be patient, to suppress their emotions, and to keep their reactions in check. But what if we challenged these expectations? What if we allowed everyone to express their feelings freely, regardless of gender? Here are few actionable to overcome unconscious biases 👉 1. Conscious Language: Replace phrases like “Boys need to be strong” with “It’s okay to feel.” The language we use shapes our reality, and changing how we speak can shift how we think. 👉 2. Promote Emotional Education: Advocate for emotional intelligence and mental health education in schools and workplaces. Understanding our emotions is key to breaking down gendered expectations. 👉 3. Supportive Environments: Encourage companies and institutions to create policies that support emotional well-being for all, free from gender bias. 👉 4. Parenting with Awareness: If you’re a parent, be mindful of the messages you send to your children. Allow them to explore their emotions freely, without the constraints of traditional gender roles. It’s time to let go of outdated beliefs and allow emotions to flow naturally. Let’s stop telling boys they can’t cry and girls they must have patience. Instead, let’s nurture a world where everyone—regardless of gender—can be strong in their vulnerability. So, how can you start making a difference today? Will you begin by changing the language you use around emotions? #EmotionalWellness #BreakTheBias #GenderEquality #MentalHealthMatters #BoysCryToo

This completely changed the way I speak to others.  Words matter. A lot. They can make someone feel welcome and valued, or completely out of place. Think about it: would you invite someone to a party if you knew they wouldn't understand half the jokes? That's kind of what happens when we use exclusionary language in the workplace. Here's the good news: becoming more inclusive with your language is totally doable! Here are a few tips: 📍Ditch the jargon. Business jargon can be a total mystery for outsiders. Use clear, plain English whenever possible. Everyone will thank you for it! 📍Challenge assumptions. Think twice before using gendered language or phrases that stereotype certain groups. 📍Stay curious! Language is constantly evolving. Be open to learning new terms and respecting people's preferred pronouns. 🔥The Diversity Playbook dives deeper into this topic, with tons of practical advice on using inclusive language in all your interactions. Let's make our workplaces (and the world!) a more welcoming space, one conversation at a time. 💛

I speak with a lot of people about gender equality. Sometimes people ask if “things are better for …. women who’ve made it to the top, the next-generation women who grew up thinking they could be anything, women with elite credentials, etc." Unfortunately, research mostly shows that the answer is “no”--gender inequality is at play at every level of organizational life, from early career to the C-suite. For example, I listened to a very interesting webinar hosted by Russell Reynolds Associates about their research study: Time to Tell a Different Story. They used media as a proxy for public sentiments about CEOs and tracked 20,000 news articles, covering almost 750 CEOs across FTSE 100, S&P 500, and Euronext 100 companies. What they discovered is that, even at the CEO level, patterns of language describing and telling the story of women differs from those for men. Here is one pattern from their study: The media tend to use very different adjectives to describe women CEOs versus their male equivalents. Based on the proportion of mentions across media, men were twice as likely to be described as ‘innovators,’ whereas women were 72% more likely to be described as ‘inspirational.’   Research at the Stanford VMware Women's Leadership Innovation Lab also showed gendered, and often disadvantaging, language patterns in performance reviews. (https://lnkd.in/gG2zy8vX) So, it’s not just the media. These patterns reflect societal norms and can lead to disparate outcomes for strong performing women. What can you do? First, you can catch gendered language patterns. Here are a few: 1️⃣ Using more people-oriented skills for women and more task-oriented for men (see RRA research) 2️⃣ Using more doubt-casting language, such as “seems to” or “managed to”. For example, instead of saying “They produced outstanding results” using “They seemed to produce outstanding results. (Do a doubt-check. See this post I wrote: https://lnkd.in/g_655tc2) 3️⃣ Using or not using stand-out language. Notice if your industry or role has some terms that indicate stand-out impact. Then notice if you only use those words to describe certain kinds of people. 💡 🌟 Once you catch these patterns, then you can find ways to remove doubt, equally use task-oriented and people-oriented descriptors and try stand-out language for all top performers. While language often reflects societal norms and stereotypes, a strategic use of language can help set the conditions for folks to succeed. https://lnkd.in/gEJJRsXS #words #language #performancemanagement #media