Crying at Work

Overall, I would not recommend crying at work. The reason is that most crying is a loss of control and an overwhelming emotional response in a setting that is not supposed to be emotional. Emotions are considered to be deficits in most male dominated industries. Being tough and sucking it up are considered to be signs of strength in these offices and companies. Crying is the antithesis of this. Crying isn’t seen as powerful or professional in offices.

Is there a place for crying in the office?

Emotions are powerful. In business, power is important. If someone wants to use all their power, than they would be wise to consider all their assets — including their emotions.

Most men do not cry as easily as women do, and have been taught not to cry in front of other people, so the current atmosphere at most offices is that crying is not a professional behavior because it is not male behavior and male behavior is the norm. Other such behaviors that are not considered appropriate are wearing clothing that defines sexuality, flirting or other sexual behavior. Cursing or losing one’s temper, which is more of a male behavior than a female behavior in general, is more widely accepted.

That said, there is a time and place for all powerful behaviors. But using crying as a power tool in offices is risky because it is not the norm. That said, many successful business people must take risks to achieve out of the box success.