Steve Pavlina wrote an article “How to Be a Man.” At first I was like whatever. You can’t put us all in a little box. As I read I understood his reasoning for his article. He wanted us to understand our true potential. He wrote about what all men are really capable of being if they let go of their fear. All of us actually put ourselves in a box. We try to define who we are by what we’ve accomplished when in reality we are so much more.

Some of the women do this at my work. They play the role that society puts on them. There are many that I’ve met that have broken through and they’ve become their own women. They aren’t afraid of who they are. They act from their values and make smart choices.

Steve Pavlina asked his fellow bloggers to write “How to Be a Woman.” I might not have as much insight as a woman, but I can shed light on the topic since my CEO is a woman and most of my co-workers are women.

Here are 8 ways to live consciously as a woman at work:

1. Be Compassionate

Women have an innate ability to have compassion for others. It’s why so many of them make great bosses. They understand when their employees are having a bad day and they let them know that they are there to help. They give positive reinforcement, letting their staff know that they are cared for by their co-workers and the company. It makes the employee/co-worker feel more secure in his or her position at work and it’s a great motivator to get them back on track.

2. Feel Sexy

Women are sexual creatures and they know it. When they hide from their sexuality they are telling their co-workers that they are afraid to be a woman. Let me make this clear. Yes, there are women who flaunt their sexuality with way too much exposed flesh and constant sexual hints. That’s not sexy; it’s gross. Sexiness can be as simple as a smile or a brush back of the hair. They don’t flaunt what they have, but they embrace their sexuality.

3. Encourage Others

A woman likes to help others become better at their jobs. A woman who creates an environment of encouragement for others will be successful. She knows that when she picks up the people around her it makes her job easier as well as more enjoyable.

4. Laugh When It’s Funny

A woman doesn’t just laugh at a joke because a superior makes it. She laughs when she thinks the joke is funny. She doesn’t want to make the person who told the joke feel bad so she’ll acknowledge the try, but won’t fake a laugh. A fake laugh is disingenuous.

5. Help Others

A woman understands the social cues of a good work environment. She is willing to help others without receiving help in return, but she also knows the benefits involved in helping her co-workers. She wants others to help her when she is struggling and the only way to do that is to extend a helping hand first.

6. Appreciate Mistakes

Mistakes are natural, especially in a fast-paced work environment. She isn’t afraid to tell someone that they made a mistake and they need to correct it or watch for it next time. She doesn’t do this maliciously or in fear, but for the other person’s own good. She understands that helping others to improve will make the company better.

7. Support Other Co-workers

A woman will back up her co-worker or staff when a client or customer is treating them badly. There is nothing wrong with constructive criticism, but berating someone in front of a group is wrong. It doesn’t matter if it’s the richest client that the company has. A company’s staff is more important than money.

8. Share Good Fortune

A woman who receives a bonus because her staff has outperformed expectations will share the wealth with them. They are the reason she looks competent to her bosses so she wants to show her appreciation for their hard work. Her staff deserves to feel good about their hard work, which creates loyalty.

The How to Be a Woman at Work can apply to everyday life, too. Working happy is the theme of my site, so I didn’t want to stray too far off topic. Next week I will post a blog about “How to Be a Man at Work.”

If this article offended anyone, I won’t apologize. This blog was meant to praise women in the workplace. If you can’t see the improvements women are making in the work environment then you aren’t looking hard enough. Women are making the workplace more enjoyable and compassionate than it was way back in the male-dominated work environment. It’s been a slow process, but meaningful change often takes time.

If you enjoyed the article and hope to read more like it then check out my archives section or subscribe to my daily Work Happy Now feed and see if there are some tips that you can use to improve your job. You’ll probably be pleasantly surprised by an article that may help you enjoy work just a little more. Enjoying work is something that should be at the top of all our “To Do” lists, so pick an article and give it a go.

If this article doesn’t get linked to by Steve then so be it, but I still want to thank Steve and Erin for sparking a little creativity. Let me know what you think of the topic in the comment section, and I hope to hear from the smart women and men who I know want to leave a comment.

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I’m back from Iceland and I’ve got some great feedback from everyday working Icelanders. We hear how wonderful other countries’ working environments are, but it’s not that different from America. They too have problems with…

• Communication

• Retention of Employees

• Motivating Their Staff

It’s not any easier working in Iceland than it is in America, India, or Australia.

They are paid three times as much as we are paid in America, but they also pay three times as much for their food, gas, and other necessities. It really all balances out. It’s amazing how a free market does that.

Icelanders live very similar to middle class Americans. They live in average size homes and have extra spending money for the movies, a night out, or mini lobsters, lamb, fresh fruit, and a myriad of other wonderful foods.

My uncle works for an Icelandic computer company and he has a work hiking group that he hangs out with every week. This promotes healthiness and camaraderie. I know that we have these clubs in almost every big company. So why are Icelanders working happy?

I believe the culture of their happiness comes from how they treat each other.

They tease each other and aren’t afraid to laugh at themselves. You may wonder, how does this make them happier? When you can laugh at yourself or a co-worker it eases the tension. They don’t hold on to these emotions. They let it go and just move on to the next part of their day. I know not all Icelanders are this way, but many of them are able to laugh off the stress.

I recently wrote a post called Inside Out Shirt Day. At first I wasn’t sure if I should publish it because I might look like a boob. After a minute of running it through my mind I decided to go for it because I’m not perfect and we should understand that mistakes are a part of work. We should learn from these mistakes, but also be able to laugh at them, so it doesn’t feel like the world is going to come crashing down on us.

I know most of us are capable of enjoying a good laugh at other people’s expense, so next time a co-worker makes fun of you, don’t get upset. Why not laugh with them? You’ll be harnessing your inner Viking. Just put your ego aside for that moment and let out that laugh. Just maybe you’ll feel like a working happy Icelander.

What was the last mistake that embarrassed you? Come on, you know you want to share.

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Jason Garrett spoke to a group of 200 at a formal dinner and his soft demeanor caught me off guard. I was expecting a tough football voice. It was a welcomed difference. It came across as humbling, not weak. He spoke well, with a slight tinge of enthusiasm.

The new guard, as I like to call it, seems to be popular throughout the football league. These forward thinking coaches use many techniques to will their players to their best. Tony Dungy is at the forefront of this movement. He believes that you don’t need to yell and scream to get your point across. Football players are people who want to be treated with respect and kindness.

Jason Garrett’s 8 lessons of leadership:

1. He talked about coaching Terrell Owens, a future Hall of Fame receiver, who is known to be a difficult player. He said that he told him (a Hall of Fame receiver) and the rest of the team that no matter who was on the field they would be coached.

Lesson – Learn from everyone around you because there is always something to improve.

2. Give people purpose. Tell people their role and recognize them for their work.

Lesson – We all need to feel appreciated.

3. When I’m on the field and my team is exhausted I go out there and become a cheerleader. I let them know whether they have cool shoes or if they are doing a good job working their butt off.

Lesson – Create a positive atmosphere by being a cheerleader when someone is having a bad day.

4. Success is 54% body language, 40% tone of voice, and 6% words. I don’t know how Jimmy Johnson got those numbers, but it explains why he was able to create such a passionate team. When he spoke to us he got us excited and ready to win.

Lesson – Use your body and voice to convey confidence.

5. Even if you think they are dragging their feet and breathing hard, you can always tell them that oxygen is good for the soul, so keep up the good work.

Lesson – Someone is always doing something right. Recognize that and give them positive feedback.

6. When looking to bring someone new on to your team make sure you look at his character. You can’t teach character, but you can teach competency

Lesson – Hire motivated people.

7. Nick Saban the great college coach always told us, “Tell me when we are making a mistake, so we can fix it.” Every time I or one of the other coaches told him something that we were doing wrong, he would bite our heads off. (laughing) It was always one of the most uncomfortable moments to be in.

Lesson – Make sure you follow your own advice otherwise no one will be willing to help you.

8. Tony Romo (Quarterback for Dallas) told me that he wanted to run a “Three wide split.” I thought to myself that is the stupidest play. Their defense is perfectly designed to stop that. I wasn’t sure what to call because it was something like 3^rd and 20, so I called it. Tony looked back at me and I could tell he was smiling. The throw went to Owens and he scored a touchdown.

Lesson - Let people do what they think is right because they’ll make it happen.

My co-worker wasn’t as enthused by the football references, but as Jason continued to speak he won her over. She was impressed by his talk. We can learn about working happy from anyone if we just take a moment to listen and put their words into action.

Does anyone have any good sports references that can be applied to working happier?

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