I couldn't resist sharing this after seeing it in my inbox today. Never hurts to do a quick self-exam....
Ten Silly Things You Do That Make You Less Likeable
On a serious note, if you've been following the newsletter or here on the forum where I've talked about "extreme male brain", you know that I'm following the science of gender-driven brain differences, and that I believe the available data support the conclusion that men are
generally better at systemizing information, and women are
generally better at empathizing with others (the two bell curves overlap, but are shifted in opposite directions). It is part of that theory that "extreme male brain" is basically autism (all system and no empathy, leading to withdrawal), and while the data are not as developed, "extreme female brain" is basically psychosis (all empathy and no system, leading to breakdown).
A lot of us guys that 'get into it' in these discussions are pretty smart ("one smart fellow, he felt smart..."), and I wouldn't be surprised if some of us (many of us?) would if tested fall on the autism spectrum somewhere (that is, tending toward a high degree of ability with systemization, and a concomitant reduced capacity for empathy).
Consider this then a light-hearted call for more likeability and more empathy. We seem to be doing 'system' pretty well, but we could probably all (definitely including myself, but leaving an out for anyone who thinks this shoe is the wrong size...) work on listening more and defending territory less.
