Episode 70: Hey Bros, Women Are Tired of Weaponized Incompetence

image courtesy of WikiHow

Weaponized incompetence is a manipulation tactic used by individuals to purposefully avoid sharing labor equally in a partnership. It's not only annoying as all hell, it can be a favorite tactic of abusers who subscribe to traditional gender roles and have no interest in stepping outside of them.

Is your partner constantly forgetting how to provide basic care for their own children? Is remembering a grocery list just far too confusing for your partner? Are you solely responsible for taking care of all the holiday labor because your partner insists they just can't do it as well as you? Have you ever been told, "that's woman's work"? Welcome, you've been victimized by weaponized incompetence. 

Not only is it infuriating, weaponized incompetence is also misogynistic. It designates certain tasks as feminine and beneath male partners—or coworkers. What professional female hasn't been assigned "notetaker" during a meeting where they're of equal importance to their male counterparts?

We're diving into what fuels individuals (ahem, men) to use weaponized incompetence, how to break the cycle with our kids and what to do if you're in the throes of it. 

You can learn more about mental and emotional abuse in this guide.