You answered B...

It’s just not worth the risk confronting her. Eventually, it will get out either through your team or hers that she is not coming up with her own stuff. Anyway, imagine how she feels – she knows that she hasn’t got a fresh idea in her head; she must be feeling vulnerable. If you challenge her she might react very defensively and then who knows… You decide to keep your head down and keep having good ideas.

This option looks safe to me – wise even. But I am worried that you would not be able to keep a lid on your frustrations in the longer term. When we leak bad feeling we inadvertently send very negative and ambiguous signals; these build and cause tension in both the sender and in the recipient. Bad feelings persist and eventually break out when we least expect – and want!

 

Our suggestion is D

This is the solution I feel most comfortable with. It isn’t risk free but it is open and assertive – you are saying how Jane’s behaviour makes you feel – not accusing her of ‘bad’ behaviour. The idea of being assertive is really about making your message strong enough to be taken seriously but not so strong that it incites the other person to feel the need to defend themselves. Your words also show that there are things that she does that you admire – this shows that you are viewing the situation – and her – in a balanced way. Jane will probably take comfort from that. I like that fact that you haven’t minced your words. I’d go for this solution too.