What's Behind Women's Intuition? - Audrey Nelson

Women are a socially subordinate group, and this power-down position has forced women to acquire certain nonverbal (and verbal) skills. Historically, you can see this kind of adaptation in other societies and cultures, and even within different subcultures in the United States.
Women had to learn to become reliant on nonverbal behavior, both sending and receiving it. Women needed to pay attention to the moods, likes, dislikes, emotions, and reactions of the dominant group that is, men almost as a survival instinct, hence the concepts of "women's intuition" and "womanly wiles."
The ability to decode nonverbal cues is ultimately valuable and essential for effective communication. So women must ask themselves, how can we use these skills to enhance our effectiveness instead of letting them divert us? Women must not focus on others for a definition of what is "normal" or acceptable behavior; they must define it for themselves. This ability can be a gift. Use it as such.
Women, practice this mantra: trust your inner knowledge, your intuition, that gut feeling. It might be more than just a hunch.


• Daniel Goleman calls it the "politics of empathy" in his book Working with Emotional Intelligence. Those with little power have the "expectation that they sense the feelings of those who hold power," says Goleman.
• PONS test
• Why is the ability to read nonverbal cues so important? How does it figure into the communication process?
• Women prefer to stand directly facing people so she can see facial expressions. How does this figure into her ability to read feelings?

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