Claim
The words used to describe women versus men at work — direct vs abrasive, confident vs intimidating, strategic vs political, passionate vs emotional — are alive and well in 2026. Same behaviors, different headlines. Those words don't just describe people incorrectly; they shape how women are evaluated, promoted, and trusted, and they push women into softening, over-preparing, and apologizing before they speak.
Mechanism
Performance reviews are written in language. When the same behavior gets a different headline based on gender, the cumulative effect over a career is biased ratings, promotions, and trust scores. Asking 'would I use this exact word if they were a different gender' is the simplest in-the-moment correction because it makes the bias visible while the writer can still change it.
Conditions
Holds in any org running written performance feedback. Fails when feedback is purely numeric — there other bias mechanisms dominate.