Female Power and the “In Crowd”

You WANT to be in the “In Crowd”, part of the inner circle, the ones that can seemingly do no wrong. There is an “In Crowd” at every level of the organization. These are the people that are considered promotable. There is a kind of competitive camaraderie among these people.

Admirable Female Leaders are always in the “In Crowd”.

Lucky me, I’ve worked for some excellent Female Leaders. And some… well not so excellent.

I worked for a wonderful woman a few years back, let’s call her Diane. Diane was in a very senior role and I got to see her come in, assess the situation, and establish herself. Diane was so smart about people, their intentions, and how to work with them so that they brought their best selves to work. She routinely discussed ongoing work efforts with her peers, her direct reports, and also their reports, so that everyone felt connected personally to her. There were some initial challenges to her power, but she was able to nip those challenges in the bud. Diane had great emotional control. Most of all, Diane was well intentioned and honest, and she made sure everyone knew that was her expectation as well.

From what I have seen, Female “In Crowd” Power, in its best form, is based on being authentic, smart-savvy, having solid expertise, being charismatic and generally well liked, and of course respected.

• AUTHENTIC: These people don’t try to be like someone else, just the best versions of themselves.
• SMART-SAVVY: These people exhibit solid judgment on what to do, and how to do it with and for people, to get things done and have things run smoothly. They don’t push or force opportunities, they work through them. When problems crop us, as they will, these people are able to handle things perfectly to get everyone back on track. They know that perfect is the enemy of really good, in most cases.
• SOLID EXPERTISE: These people have an expertise in their area of leadership, and they know what their subordinates and peers are talking about, but they don’t presume to know everything. They learn from nearly every interaction. They count on people working with and for them to do their jobs, they are informed but not micro-managers.
• CHARISMATIC: Self-Control, charm and grace combined, you are instantly at ease with them, and you want to be near them more often, if possible.
• GENERALLY WELL-LIKED: And that means generally well intentioned too. If there is a “beef” that comes up, they solve it quickly. These well intentioned people don’t cause problems where there are none. They are not bullies or sarcastic in their interactions with others.
• RESPECTED: Because they are authentic, smart-savvy, have solid expertise, are charismatic, well intentioned, and well liked these people are respected.

These are the attributes I have seen and admired, and frankly worked to emulate in my own authentic fashion.

Do you agree with this list? Is there more to add? What did I miss? Do you have an “In Crowd” story?

photo credit: http://www.stockfreeimages.com/