Posted by Dave Lorenzo - Business Coach

Sex is a basic human need.  It is instinctive.  It is physiological.  It falls into the same category as the need for food and shelter.  All animals (including humans) have the instinct to procreate.

Humans have free will and self control.  This is one of the things that separate us from the animals.  Each of us have the ability, if we chose to do so, to control our desire to chase members of the opposite sex around the office.

Given that we have this ability to control ourselves, the question remains; Why do so many executives get in trouble for inappropriate sexual conduct at work?

Typically an executive tryst is not about sexual gratification as much as it is about other psychological issues.  The two primary drivers of this behavior are ego and power.  Many execs who have affairs do so to fulfill a gap in their self-esteem.   Believe it or not, many executives who are prepared and confident in the boardroom have deep insecurities in the bedroom.  The need to continually prove themselves in this area fuels their inappropriate behavior.

In other cases, having a workplace affair is a way for an executive to “mark his/her territory”.  This is purely about power.  The offending executive is making a statement to the rest of the office.  This person is saying; “I am the boss”.

Obviously, either of these reasons are warped thinking – and in fact this behavior is most often unconsciously driven.  So what is an executive in heat supposed to do?  Well, for starters, think about the business and the shareholders first and foremost.  An affair in the office will never end well.  Best case, it is a distraction.  Worst case, see William Jefferson Clinton.  

The bottom line is that the business leader has a responsibility to drive positive business momentum.  An office affair is one of the most selfish acts am executive can perpetrate.  Sex is a primal urge and it can make people do stupid things but each of us has the ability to just say “no”.

Filed under: Sex and Business
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