Stop telling them what to do

Women talk, men do. Many women, unfortunately, have this astounding idea that they can and should tell men what to do. Men are men. They are strong warriors and they know what to do. They resent it when a woman tells them what to do. Several things happen when a woman tells a man to do something. Firstly she is communicating to him that she is trying to control his life. When we try to control someone, it is a vote of no confidence in their own capabilities.

He is the hero – he is in charge of his life. Secondly, telling is a descending communication. It is a  command. The woman is not the man’s commander. Trust him. Don’t tell him. One man told me: “Women talk to men as if they are boys. If I don’t know how to do something, I will figure it out.” Or he will read the manual while on the toilet.

Communicating a need does not imply using that TONE OF VOICE and ordering him about.

Don’t help a man. He is an action hero. He can do it himself

Some women do not tell men what to do, but they do help men. Women are by nature very helpful creatures.

For example when a woman in a queue at a check-out counter, tells the woman behind her, she forgot an item and dashes off to fetch it, the one behind will push the absent woman’s trolley for her. Generally, men won’t push another man’s trolley. To women it is sociable to help. To men it is a sign of weakness. Never help a man. Unless he asks, which he seldom will, and then don’t make a fuss about it. A woman should not offer to help a man paint the chairs.

She can ask if she can join him. He may ask her to help him change the tyre and to pass him the thingamajig. She should not tell him how her Dad had taught her to change the tyre and that he is doing it all wrong. If he is struggling to unlock the front door, she should not take the key out of his hand, not even if he is a bit tipsy. Does she just have to stand there and wait patiently until he gets it right? Yes, and then she smiles and thanks him. I did not say it is fair.

One man explained it as follows: “Core to a woman’s essence is her appearance. Therefore a man should not tell her to go on a diet because she is fat. Core to a man’s essence is his competence. Therefore a woman should not tell him to get a professional, because he is useless at fixing things. If she goes on a diet of her own accord, then he can support her, and if he gets a professional of his own accord, then she can thank him.”

Needs vs. Needy

A man wants a woman to communicate her needs to him. How else would he be able to fulfill her needs, if he does not know what she wants? He can’t read her mind, so she has to tell him. However it often happens, once she communicates her needs, he calls her “needy”.

So I ask the men, what is the difference between a woman communicating her needs and a needy woman? A man wants a woman to need him, but he does not want her to be helpless and her needs must not distract him too much from his quest and require his full-time attention.

It’s fine for her to communicate her needs, but it depends how she does it and if she is persistent, she is needy. Timing is very important too – if it interferes with something else he would rather do, she is needy. If she shows appreciation, he is likely to continue fulfilling her needs, if she criticises, she is needy.

One man explained: “Like women, men need me-time too. When she clings to you like a heart-lung machine, she is needy. When I speak to another woman and she suddenly grabs my arm, interrupts and kisses my face, it is embarrassing and she is very needy.” One man gave me a very clear and precise answer – the difference between having needs and being needy is: “Nagging.”

Regarding timing, one man commented: “If she tells me she needs it done immediately and I drop whatever I planned doing, to do it for her, and I later discover it was not that urgent at all, then next time she requires me to do something urgently, I will disregard her ideas of how and when things need to be done. If she tells me why she needs it, I can determine how urgent it is.”

Read More About: Introverts and Extroverts

Men don’t talk. They do

When we buy a doll for a girl, we buy her a Barbie doll. When we buy a ‘’doll’’ for a boy, we buy him an action hero – a Superman. The word “action” is very important. I often advise women not to pay too much attention to what a man says, for he may often promise her the world, and he may even believe it at that moment, but what is more important, are his sustained actions. Men are action orientated.

Men express themselves mainly through their actions. If he loves a woman, he will solve her problems, he will gratify her needs and wishes, he will buy her things, he will fix her life, and he will work hard to provide for her. He will set out to make her happy.

Despite them being action orientated, when I ask men what is the most important element of a relationship, they do not unanimously answer: “Sex”. They do unanimously answer: “Communication.” Now this is interesting.

Does this mean the doers want to talk? Sometimes they do want to talk, especially if they trust a woman. And then the woman perpetually interrupts him, or she does not listen to him.

Listen

When a woman listens to a man when he tells her something, without interrupting him, he gets the message that he is important to her and that she is paying attention. If she interrupts, he feels unimportant. Sometimes it’s a good idea not to respond immediately.

He could rather think about what he said and come back a few days later with a suggestion or a response, instead of offering him immediate advice. To a man, immediate advice sounds as if she is disagreeing with him. “I have been thinking about what you discussed with me yesterday.

I wondered if … what do you think?” Just by adjusting her mode of communication, she circumvents sounding as
if she is criticising. Of course, she is entitled to a different opinion, as long as it does not make him sound stupid.

“Sometimes a good communicator is a person who just knows when to shut up,” said one man. Another man said: “It takes much courage for a man to open himself up. Don’t later use what he told you against him as a vicious backlash.”

Truly listening to someone does not imply merely keeping quiet when someone else is talking. It encompasses a cognitive effort to interpret the essence of the message the other person is communicating, seeing the message from that person’s perspective, attempting to understand that person’s underlying emotions and motivations, foreseeing how that person will act on the message and only once these cognitive actions have been completed can the listener then consider what is his/her response, emotions and the probable impact that the response will have on the other person. Listening is a complicated cognitive ACTION, not just a passive waiting for a breather to jump in.