By April Daniels Husser, SELF magazine
It's widely understood that there are some things women just naturally do better than men, like tolerate colds (just ask any woman who's ever nursed her guy through the "man flu") and find lost objects (just ask your mom!). But according to a recent study, we are better at something that might surprise you and the man in your life ... parking cars!
The study, conducted by a U.K.-based car park firm, covertly observed 2,500 drivers in 700 parking lots and rated these seven key characteristics of parking styles: appropriate space-finding speed; pre-parking pose; reverse into space; forward into space; speed of maneuver; reposition shuffle; central finish.
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Women scored higher on six of the seven -- but when researchers questioned women drivers, only one-fifth (18 percent) thought they were better parkers than men and less than a third (28 percent) believed they were better parkers than their partners. This got us thinking: What else are women great at but probably don't even know it? Here are four more things you can add to your list of skills:
Handling job interview stress. The next time you're feeling anxious before a big interview, take heart. According to new research from the University of Western Ontario, while women may feel more anxiety and stress before meeting with a prospective employer, they're more likely than men to cope with that stress and, in turn, perform better during the interview. The reason for this, say researchers, is women are more likely to find productive ways of adapting to their stress -- calling loved ones for support, preparing thoroughly, etc. -- while men are more likely to try to ignore their anxiety.
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Investing. Oh yes, that's right. When it comes to money matters, a study done by Barclays Wealth and Ledbury Research found that women make better investors than men. Why? In a nutshell, women tend not to take as many foolish risks as men. Women buy, hold and make money. The study found that men are more likely to self-identify as "risk-takers" while women were shown to place a high value on self-control. The end result? Women make more money from their smart, strategic investment choices.
Tasting beer! According to Dan Abrams, who wrote an entire book on all the things women do better than men (it's called Man Down: Proof Beyond a Reasonable Doubt That Women Are Better Cops, Drivers, Gamblers, Spies, World Leaders, Beer Tasters, Hedge Fund Managers, and Just About Everything Else, if you're looking for a bedside read that will no doubt bug the heck out of your man), research proves that not only do women have a better sense of smell than men do, but we're more likely to have a greater number of more-sensitive taste buds. Ergo, we can taste better!
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Staying healthy. Not only do women tend to eat a healthier diet than men do (a study of 14,000 Americans conducted by the University of Minnesota found that men are more likely to eat fast food and pizza, while women are more likely to go for fruits and veggies), we have stronger natural immune systems. A study from McGill University found that estrogen plays a part in boosting our immune systems, and more recent research from Ghent University in Belgium discovered that we can thank the MicroRNAs on our X chromosomes for giving us stronger natural immune systems. Just don't tell your guy about this the next time you get a cold, or he'll never bring you tea in bed again!
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