Is Business 2.0 Fundamentally Feminine?

Business is historically a male-dominated endeavor, so it’s no surprise that the stereotype about what it takes to succeed in business involves traditionally masculine characteristics: aggression, tactical thinking, bravado, ruthlessness, objectivity, ego, pride, sports metaphors, war metaphors, etc.

However, the more you look at “Business 2.0,” the new generation of companies rising to power, you start to realize that they’re characterized by traditionally feminine characteristics: friendliness, relationships, consideration, humility, customer focus, situational decision-making, receptivity to feedback, thoughtfulness, quality of life, etc.

Things are certainly swinging back from the overly-masculine extreme at which they had been stuck for a long time. Feminine-minded businesses now have a strategic advantage, since they’re in the refreshing and desirable minority, while masculine-minded businesses are forgettably plentiful.

While you don’t have to be a man to run a masculine business or a woman to run a feminine business, perhaps it’s no coincidence that—according to a study by Guardian Life—women entrepreneurs are going to create more than half of new small business jobs by 2018.

Guys, maybe it’s time to put down The Art of War. Business is changing.