In one frequently cited study, 156 subjects assessed two fictional CEOs—one man, one woman—who both talked a lot, or a little. Participants expected the powerful man to speak up and rewarded him for dominating the conversation, whereas the woman received backlash for talking more than others. Both the male and female respondents judged the female CEO harshly. What’s especially troubling, to me, is that women know they’ll be penalized for the performance of confidence. When I ask friends if they think they have a confidence problem, they assure me they don’t: They acknowledge that they know
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