Communication
Deborah Tannen, in her video Nine to Five, presents the difference in conversational style between men and women in the workplace. According to the video, "The way people interact with each other during the workday has a huge effect on who is heard, who gets credit for work and ideas, and what gets done." Watching Tannen's work made me aware of how these differences exist in my everyday interactions with my peers, professors, and employer. Furthermore, by shedding light upon these differences, I find importance in changing the way I speak to certain audiences, especially as I train for a career in business. Personally, I feel that the conclusions Tannen draws about the differences in conversational style are generally valid, especially in the areas of giving orders, eye contact, and conversation rituals. Giving orders and making requests is essential in the workplace in order to get tasks done. The way in which an employer does so effects what their co-workers think of them. According to Tannen, when men give orders, they do so in a direct, but not impolite way. Some women may see this as overbearing because the men may not say "please" or make the request in a gentle manner. Women, on the other hand, give orders in a
Additionally, men and women differ in how they use eye contact when speaking to others. After doing research with children, she confirmed her findings by observing workplace behavior. Tannen posits that women make a connection with their audience through a direct gaze. Men, conversely, tend not to look eye to eye with whomever they are speaking. In society today, a man looking into the eyes of another man could translate to a challenge. A man using eye contact with a woman could signify flirtation. Furthermore, many people believe that when men do not look at the partner of the conversation, they are not listening. In most cases this is not true. After watching Tannen's video, I observed the use of eye contact in my Core Humanities seminar. In accordance with the idea presented in the video, most of the males in my class do not make eye contact when speaking to the professor or other students. The females tend to look up and utilize the direct gaze when they speak. In my experience working at a catering hall with both a female and a male boss, I found my female boss's demeanor more authoritative and firm in terms of giving orders compared to the male boss. Although this goes against the idea presented by Tannen, it does parallel what she menti
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 853
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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