On Differences between Men & Women

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In an effective conversation, the next person picks up and builds on what the last person said - like passing a ball around the room.

The best intellectual conversation I've been in involved a group of women discussing the problems women have in high tech fields - these were not just personal problems. It was great - a lot of good ideas, strong opinions, interesting perspectives.

Suddenly someone made an observation about our conversation style and used the ball analogy to illustrate its effectiveness.

Then she added that when men are in a conversation, they tend to fix on their own ideas, and talk as if they don't hear what anybody else is saying.

We all imagined a bunch of balls being thrown into the air, with nobody to pick them up.