Countering Double Bind with Double Bind Leadership

A double bind occurs when a person making a choice is presented with contradictory information, leading them to believe that whatever they choose to do will be viewed as incorrect. Double-bind leadership is a problem that many people have to face in the workplace.  

Sometimes our bosses or leaders fail to demonstrate warmth and competence in corporate boardrooms; they frequently experience backlash or detrimental career consequences—gendered cultural expectations known as the “double bind.” To counter double bind, in this article, we will learn how to adopt double bind leadership and what steps should be taken to counter it.  

So many emotional and psychological issues stem from a failed double-bind leadership. To get out of the double bind or to assist our clients in getting out of a double bind, you can adopt some of the following mentioned points.  

• flexible thought 
• the ability to perceive beyond the evident  
• a readiness to give up either/or restrictions. 

One of the significant examples of a double bind in the workplace is ‘women are cruel to women.’ Yes, there are typical interactions amongst women that can feel catty and cruel, and preconceptions about women exist for a reason. But if you think your boss is a witch, you’ll treat her like one, which makes her act even more witchy. Double bind leadership teaches us to build a long-term plan that will benefit you, your team, or your family. It is not to lash out at people in meetings or neglect your family to be accessible all the time if you are a female leader fighting to be taken seriously. 

The key is that you can only start to identify genuinely effective solutions for your circumstances after you resolve that you won’t hold stereotypes or other people accountable for your difficulties. You don’t want to become like your boss and make other people’s life miserable? Well then, you will have to adopt the idea of double-bind leadership and make your life easy.  

Put the easy finger of blame aside and acknowledge that the world you live in is a jigsaw that you must piece together. You’ll be astonished at how quickly you start to find it if you assume there is an actual, workable answer to the interpersonal problems you confront. 

Consider a scenario in which your supervisor fails to strike the right balance between assertiveness and aggression. It would help if you first became aware of how the aggression you feel before you react “aggressively” and started to change your communication style from aggressive to assertive. According to the double bind leadership, you need to minimize the aggressive contact between you and your supervisor.  

When you become aware of how you’re feeling and stop the automatic response that other people see as hostility, you have gained the control you need to decide how you will respond. You will see a sense of accomplishment in knowing that other people do not trigger you to the point that you become aggressive. You’ll feel that their control has been lifted, and you’re free. At that point, you may opt for a more “assertive” approach.  

When you recognize your sensations, stop whatever your employer is doing that causes you to respond in a way that doesn’t feel good to you. 

Be the person you would be in each circumstance if you weren’t provoked, whether you are the boss or the one dealing with them. If the relationship is very messed up, it could seem not very easy even to attempt to envision. Still, once you do, you’ll start to feel miraculously better, which should be done in the double bind leadership.  

Don’t let anyone ruin your vibe; go with the flow and work hard because your work is what matters in an organization at the end of the day!  

When you believe that you are the only one accountable for the outcomes, you are engaging in the fallacy of the double bind, and the way to resolve this issue is double bind leadership.  

This article taught us how to counter double-bind thinking by using double-bind leadership. The double bind is a tricky situation everyone must face someday, but it is better to think with your brain, not emotionally. All you have to do is think positively and ignore the negative energy around you. You will see that soon you will be able to counter double-bind thinking and behavior.  

What else can you do? Well, you can look at the people around you—especially the ones who do not treat you well. You can keep that image in your mind and tell yourself daily that you have to make an effort not to be like them. Trust me that will be an outstanding achievement!