Recently I was honored to speak at a conference about compelling communication. My audience was a group of women surgeons who were collectively a brilliant, accomplished bunch. Yet unfortunately, and unsurprisingly, they shared their frustrations about not being treated with the same respect as their male counterparts.
One example?
Male resident physicians are selected for new opportunities more often than females, even when more women are in the program.
In honor of Women’s History Month, let’s focus on how utilizing questions and curiosity can help dismantle blatant sexism in the workplace.
Here’s how to get there:
- Open-ended questions are powerful. When you ask open-ended questions, your listeners must put on their critical thinking caps. Perhaps a female doctor feels her skills and experience are overlooked. Asking, “What are the important qualities a surgeon should possess in this case?” may illuminate the bias more effectively than pointing out that male surgeons are selected over females.
- Watch the Why’s. Yes, author Simon Sinek advocates the use of Why over What, but as leadership coach Kristy Mandour notes in this video, using the question “why?” can come across as accusatory. “How should we select which residents observe the surgery?” will be better received than “Why did you select only male residents to observe the surgery?”
- Get curious. World Debate Champion Julia Dhar explains the benefit of choosing “curiosity over clash.” She advocates for leaning into conversation instead of “winning the argument.” This emphasizes the people, not the “politics,” and opens the floor for better understanding. Good modeling for the world we want to live in!
I’d love to hear your strategies for making progress when working with a difficult person.
Sincerely,
