...because it's going to end up on one of Wanda's blogs. Well folks, here it is.
A couple of weeks back, my husband and I and some motorcycle-riding colleagues took a portion of our day and rode to Yosemite, had lunch at the Awhanee, and headed back to town. We enjoyed ribbing one of the participants on his 400cc Yamaha scooter (he is affectionately nicknamed "Scooter Boy", but man, did he show us...after lunch, he took the lead back home and whoa, can that thing corner versus all of our 600 pound + bikes!) During lunch, we stumbled on to the topic of the difference between guys and gals (oh boy, and I was the only female).
One of my companions (who will remain nameless to protect the guilty-hehe) started talking about certain behaviors exhibited by men that was an "interesting" perspecitive on how a guy shoud treat a gal, well I disagreed and said (all in fun folks) "does your wife know about this?" That's when he said "I'm not afraid of her!"...we all roared and that's when someone piped up-"uh-oh, I don't think you should have said that, because it's going to end up on one of Wanda's blogs!"....want you all to know, this individual did go home and fess up, knowing that his wife is one of my regular readers :)
This is actually very timely as just last week, the Journal of Healthcare Management September/October 2008 edition has an article entitled: "Gender and Leadership in Healthcare Administration: 21st Century Progress and Challenges". It highlights the need for strong leadership and increased diversity in today's healthcare workforce. Data suggests that the number of women in leadership roles is increasing. The article mentioned that the "Solucient 100 Top Hospitals" designation was awarded to progressive/cutting-edge hospitals, and that those hospitals were most likely to have significant gender diversity in their leadership. Also noted: "Stereotypical female attributes and behaviors-cooperation, modesty, and emotiveness" compared to "Stereotypical male attributes and behaviors-assertiveness, stability, achievement, orientation, and independence (wow, for those of you who know me, I must be a man inside a woman's body-even my boss says periodically-"don't mess with Wanda"!).
No matter your perception or philosophy about leadership styles it comes down to some "generic" principles to foster career progression for anyone: identifying high potential candidates, provide effective mentoring, develop plans for leadership succession and leadership development, promote professional networking, and supporting work-life balance.
Oh, and nameless one, I appreciate your humor, friendship, and that we do not ever take one another too seriously!