Service of Confidence
December 4th, 2023
Categories: Confidence, Craft Fair, Technology

I attended an annual meeting of New York Women in Communications last week. A panelist, Joanna Coles, said something I’ve heard or observed before that nevertheless resonated. The former editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan and Hearst’s chief content officer from 2016-2018 pointed out the difference between men and women when, for example, technology, during a presentation, goes splat. A man might say, “that f-ing thing is broken.” A woman might get all flustered and mumble that she is terrible at all things technical.
I noticed a close cousin of that insecure behavior at the first holiday craft fair at The Society of Illustrators in NYC on Saturday. It took place in the society’s charming East 63rd Street townhouse. Most of the tabletop displays were staffed by women. I stopped by each one over three floors. Some female artists greeted me or smiled. Most sat silently on their chairs behind the tables or ignored me as they adjusted something in their display. Yet every man engaged me in conversation. Whose work do you think I remember most?
Just saying.
Are you surprised that these examples of reticence and lack of confidence continue to exist for some talented women? Do you have other examples?
