This could be a “comment,” but I want to put the issue “at the top” again. “Respect” said that women were the empathy freaks, and we guys aren’t—and that the Excellence in Empathy bit yields greater Sales Effectiveness. Several of you remind me that empathy is not the “exclusive domain” of women. I agree! My problem is, after eight years of study, that I am frighteningly aware of differences. I’d like to think I’ve got a pretty damn good “empathy quotient”—and I think my record as a public speaker attests to that. On the other hand, my observation says I can’t hold a candle to most women on this and a dozen dozen important like issues. I’m decently trained in statistics, and well aware of the key idea called “central tendencies.” That is to say, there are many, many empathetic guys—and there are many, many un-empathetic women. But on the whole, women score much better than we do on that empathy scale—which, in the case of the 08.19 blog, is essential to sales success.
One of our colleagues asserts that I’m a “total moron” … “pathetic” … “anti-male” … “politically correct.” Generally there’s not much value to replying to such remarks, but I do want to say a few things:
First, I’m obviously NOT politically correct—or there would be a woman running for President this November!
Second, I am not “anti-male”—but I readily admit to being “pro-female.” And I am unabashedly “pro-market”—and developing products and marketing effectively to women is … THE BIGGEST PROFIT MAXIMIZING OPPORTUNITY IN BUSINESS TODAY.
And then there’s just plain uncontestable & uncomfortable stuff like this …
Fact: 8 of 500 Fortune 500 CEOs are women; a stupid waste of talent, or not? And, from Closing the Leadership Gap, the book by Marie C. Wilson: “Internationally, the United States ranked 60th in women’s political leadership, behind Sierra Leone and tied with Andorra.”
Fact: Alas, men are responsible for over 90 percent of domestic violence and 90 percent of non-domestic violent crimes and 90 percent of international violence—that does not make me especially proud of my gender. Likewise, the famous Grameen Bank of Bangladesh, which invented the wildly successful concept of “micro-lending” (tiny loans to start businesses), grants about 90 percent of its loans to women (women use the money as intended, to improve their family’s lot; while men tend to often as not drink up the proceeds)—and that does not make me terribly proud of my gender.
As to the “pathetic total moron” charge—IYAMWHATEVERIYAM.