Years ago, Desfosses was taking the elevator to a meeting. She noticed that the man next to her on the elevator was scribbling on a matchbook cover. Desfosses said she never forgot how he cleared his throat and carried off his presentation without a hitch. He didn't say he had just scribbled the nine points a few minutes before on a matchbook cover, or that he'd forgotten to prepare, or that he was sorry. Men never do.
Women often do.
The University was well-represented at the conference, and many of the workshops were led by Albany faculty members. During an afternoon workshop on paradoxes, Sue Faerman talked about how to look at organizational problems in new ways. When problems exist at several levels, one may have to move to a different level of consciousness to find a solution, she explained. Take the paradox of control and flexibility. Taken to an extreme each of these positive qualities becomes a negative.