The Annoying Reason Men Can Only Do One Thing At A Time
He's not ignoring you. He's locked in on his current task.
Andrii Zastrozhnov / Shutterstock Men and women are supposed to be equal right? Well, for certain things yes. For example, equal pay, equal rights, etc. But men's and women's brains are not the same.
Science can actually explain the reasons men and women do the things they do. Research shows that the female brain operates differently than the male brain. Each has been trained by millions of years of evolution.
This is the source of many of the problems and miscommunication between the sexes.
The difference between a man's brain and a woman's brain
Women are multi-taskers and often cannot understand why men can seem to only do one thing at a time. My goodness, a woman can drive a car while putting on her make-up and talking on her hands-free phone, but a man will miss his exit on the freeway because his wife was talking to him.
That is because the male brain is compartmentalized and specialized to concentrate on one specific task at once. It may seem limiting to a woman, but it enables a man to become a specialist in one subject.
Now, there is evidence that multitasking can lead to a scattered mind, a lack of focus and, ultimately, more stress in your life. In that sense, the single-minded focus many men display could be considered a healthy approach to getting things done.
On the other hand, a woman's ability to juggle everything on her daily to-do list is basically a superpower.
How a woman uses her brain
A woman uses both sides of her brain, which enables her to multitrack many activities.
In prehistoric times, men were responsible for hunting and bringing home food. They needed skills to hone in on one target.
The traditional mythology says women were home defending the nest and needed to perform several activities simultaneously with a wide peripheral vision to monitor their surroundings. No matter what actually went on around the communal fire during the Neolithic age, women still bear more than their share of work around the house.
Statistics from Pew Research revealed that in 2020, only 38 percent of women surveyed said they were satisfied with the division of labor at home. Among men, 55 percent were satisfied with that. The lopsided math illustrates the need for women to multitask — and is an indication that it's not all that fun or rewarding.
'He couldn't even hear me'
I used to go into my husband's studio when he was working on a project and start talking to him about something I needed help with or advice.
At first, he couldn't even hear me, and then when I would press the issue, he would get extremely agitated because he was concentrating on one thing, the task at hand. Now I wait until he is relaxed and not doing something else before approaching him with my problems. That way I can get his undivided attention with no arguments.
Understanding this one difference between male and female brain function will do wonders for your relationship.
Marla Martenson is a transformational life coach, matchmaker, author & tarot reader