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Smile wryly (try laughing even) at whatever they say, and "give 'em better than you get". Insult their manhood, their inferior wit, or any other faults they may have and do it skilfully with a twinkle in your eye. And whatever you do, remember to make sure you don't show any negative emotion in the exchange (never, never, never...). Ironically, I find those who "dish it out" the most can't take it, and often embarrass themselves when faced with these tactics.
Trust me, although some men may be threatened by a woman on a job, "banter" is par for the course if you're doing "manual work", whether you're male or female -- the younger you are, the worse the "grief" is. Maybe it's all that sweat and hormones, maybe it's frustration at working like a dog and aching every night, who knows? But I've worked with young, old, male, female, gay, straight, the posh and the "common", and everyone gets ribbed at some point. And if you bite, it only gets worse. Rightly or wrongly, it's all about showing you don't take yourself too seriously and proving you don't think you're better than anyone else.
Also, remember, the only way to silence continual criticism of your work is to work well and hard. Failing this, if someone keeps pointing out your errors (etc), do the same to them:
e.g. (N.B. SMILE) "Nevermind what I'm doing; look at the state of your 'cutting-in'. You been on the sauce again, or do I make you nervous?" (then blow them a kiss). |
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