The last week or so has been a little nutty. I've been working on a big deal website with a team in New York that changed the creative on the site no less than a dozen times in three weeks. The revisions were actually easier to manage than one of the clients. She's very good at the false gratitude before she drops the big open ended question that eludes to something she might think didn't get done her way. And, she's a chronic repeater. I hate repeaters. This isn't the first grade. All adults in this game. Once is plenty.
To get a real feel for how she sounds on the phone during our super fun daily or even, lucky us, twice daily status calls, watch this clip. She may have been the muse for this character from SNL. Yes, she's Penelope.
It's been extra fun. Especially the whole passive aggressive game she seems to have perfected throughout her career. The good news is that the team I've been lucky enough to work with can read her quite well and just move past it and happily do their work. And, we've all found ways to laugh about the odd repeating and condescending tone.
I didn't put this up to complain. But, I'm curious about how other women in this field feel about some of the women they have to deal with. I find that male counterparts are often easier to work with. Eliminate the emotion and the insecurity and things seem to work really well. I wonder what it is in her life or in her career that has made her difficult and childish.
We get to work in an industry that can be terribly fun. Being around exceptional creative and watching something flat and boring turn in to an interactive work of art is a favorite part of my job. Then helping people turn the fun that we've had building something for them in to something they can be proud of, and that will yield growth in revenue and market share and perception. There are few things better than that.
Today, I started to write my curriculum for the branding class I teach next fall. I have over 50 women enrolled. I hope I can help them choose to love the process and to like the client despite the serious character flaws like our chronic repeater. Should probably learn that myself.
To get a real feel for how she sounds on the phone during our super fun daily or even, lucky us, twice daily status calls, watch this clip. She may have been the muse for this character from SNL. Yes, she's Penelope.
It's been extra fun. Especially the whole passive aggressive game she seems to have perfected throughout her career. The good news is that the team I've been lucky enough to work with can read her quite well and just move past it and happily do their work. And, we've all found ways to laugh about the odd repeating and condescending tone.
I didn't put this up to complain. But, I'm curious about how other women in this field feel about some of the women they have to deal with. I find that male counterparts are often easier to work with. Eliminate the emotion and the insecurity and things seem to work really well. I wonder what it is in her life or in her career that has made her difficult and childish.
We get to work in an industry that can be terribly fun. Being around exceptional creative and watching something flat and boring turn in to an interactive work of art is a favorite part of my job. Then helping people turn the fun that we've had building something for them in to something they can be proud of, and that will yield growth in revenue and market share and perception. There are few things better than that.
Today, I started to write my curriculum for the branding class I teach next fall. I have over 50 women enrolled. I hope I can help them choose to love the process and to like the client despite the serious character flaws like our chronic repeater. Should probably learn that myself.
1 comments:
Almost all the women I've worked with that are at a similar level as I am have been amazing. They are used to being the only women in a room and once we got to know each other, it's been good times. I have some darling, super close friends that I met at work. At one company I actually started a women's group that was supposed to meet quarterly. We made up only 10% of the company and were scattered in different departments; it was fun getting to know each other and mentoring junior women.
However, on the occasion that I run across another woman that is not in "the tribe," it can be hard. It ranges from someone who is introverted enough that she won't interact (that's fine, easy to work with/around) to someone who is devious, litigious, duplicitous and really horrible.
In general, there are men who drive me up a wall, and women as well (and in probably the same proportions.) It's a personality thing for me, not gender. Can you work as part of a team? Can you get things done? Can you not act like an a-hole?
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