The pros and cons of catering

What is catering?

Social scientists define catering as consciously or unconsciously adapting one’s approach to impression management. In other words, it means attenuating your behavior to what you think will please other people to create a favorable impression. It could also be understood as the opposite behavioral approach to acting authentically (i.e., in accordance with your own behavioral tendencies).

The pros: how catering can lead to positive outcomes

By catering to someone, you’re essentially focusing on them, which usually makes them like you more.

It often involves adapting yourself to another person’s preferences (possibly using flattery), which can increase affinity and attraction.

Adapting your actions or words to what you believe are the other person’s preferences can help create a ‘connection,’ which could be useful in terms of leadership.

The cons: why catering can backfire

Catering to other people’s expectations often makes you feel uncomfortable and stressed, and therefore less likely to perform well.

It essentially requires you to guess what the other person wants from you – and you might not always guess correctly.

Not being true to your own tendencies can make you feel you have compromised your integrity; feelings that can spill over and affect performance.

Being seen as a ‘caterer’ means you are likely to be perceived less positively than someone who acts more consistently with their true self, which has damaging implications for your leadership.