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Comment by etjossem | Hacker News Reader

How about instead we just agree not to hit on each other within a power-imbalanced professional relationship?

Seriously, I don't get how this is hard for folks. It's unbelievably simple. Be aware that you may have professional power over other people, and if you do, make an active effort not to flirt with them. Have the self-restraint not to mix an investment/supervisory relationship with romance or sex. Either it will feel coercive, or it's a conflict of interest waiting to happen.

Avoiding trying to sleep with your subordinates is not rocket surgery.

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Thanks, I'll be sure tell my parents (mom used to be dad's secretary) that their 35y relationship will end in failure.

Fortunately for women who just want to get their work done and go home, we do not live in the world of Mad Men anymore. Since then, we have realized how important it is to strive for work environments that are free from sexual pressure and related favoritism.

"Fortunately for women who just want to get their work done and go home, we do not live in the world of Mad Men anymore" Yes we can all be happy about that, but it's not an either/or situation, lots of relationships start at work and they can work out just fine.

Sure, relationships that start at work/in an uneven power dynamic can absolutely work out, but you only know this afterwards, when everything has run its course.

If someone else had applied for the position as your father's secretary and had been refused, they could have complained about it by pointing to the conflict of interest.

If you want to avoid the negative consequences of mixing work and romance, you'd better not only focus on the best-case result, but also keep the worst case in mind and accordingly tread carefully.

For every one example of your parents, there are many examples of my friends and girlfriend who have been harassed at work. My girlfriend was stalked for a year. The guy thought he was being sweet and romantic.

It's still incredibly inappropriate to ask someone out when you can fire her. How do you know she really wants to say yes?

If everyone would operate 100 % of the time with their rational mind, this agreement that you are suggesting would be feasable. No. One. Does. Wishful thinking.

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