Every day decisions are made that influence our lives or businesses. With men and women occupying the same space in corporate American, the Glass Ceiling is busting wide open. Men by nature want to conquer and dominate and always have, but women have arrived on the scene with full force and a different style that men sometimes find hard to understand. Women tend to tackle the matter at hand by looking for a sequential set of maneuvers that will have an outcome of a win/win situation. Why do we communicate so differently and why do we tend to be so vastly dissimilar when it comes to making decisions? What causes men to want to conquer and women to have the need for order and sequence? My uncle gave me a funny example the other day of how men see women's thought patterns when it comes to making decisions. I thought that this insight was a great example of men conquering and women looking for sequence and order before they tackle the matter at hand. Here's what he had to say: "Men rule by action. Women rule by committee. For example: Man sees hill, climbs hill. Woman sees hill, forms discussion group, sets up hill climbing committee, votes for hill climbing team, schedules climb date, checks rain fall charts, does studies to locate best path, sends out scouts, and much, much, much, much later... finally climbs the hill." So what is the answer to the question of our differences? Part of the answer is in the fact that we are born chemically different and the other part of the mystery is solved when we factor in the environment that we were raised in. Chemistry and environment have a lot to do with our communication skills and the way we make decisions. We base our communication and decision making process mostly from the subconscious mind, which rules 83% of our actions. Our subconscious mind holds not only our value system but the beliefs we have about ourselves. Learning to celebrate our differences can help bridge the gap that holds the two sexes at a distance and help stave off the frustrations that may occur in a relationship of any kind, whether it is boss/employee, co-worker, or life partners. Learning to comprehend each others language through study and observation will help each involved party to better understand those around us. Copyright 2005 Jaci Rae |
