HOW GIRLS THINK

FEMALE THINKING 101
The female mind can think of a hundred things at one time. With this high-powered mind, all 298 conclusions in a given situation are analyzed in virtually 5.7 seconds! Picture the scene: You stroll through the front door at 8:30 one evening — 30 minutes after you said you would be home. Mom frantically demands, “You’re late! Where on earth have you been?”

You’re about to blurt out, “Chill out, Mom! What’s the big deal?”

Fact is, she has already imagined every possible reason for you being late from the simple fact you lost track of time while playing basketball with your buds to the extreme chance of a horrifying accident. Your explanation to Mom needs to be calm and truly apologetic. An explosive response from you causes more anxiety and unnecessary worry.

Your mom loves you and is now worried whether she has failed to teach you responsibility and time management. Generally speaking, females are easily worried. We can have anxiety about physical appearance, pleasing others, getting our feelings hurt. You may be thinking, Hey, guys worry about those same things.

Yes, but you deal with them in a different manner. All you might do is shoot some hoops, catch up on some z’s, or find leftovers in the fridge. Girls talk about their worries with someone they trust. Remember to be sensitive with your words when speaking to a girl. Offer sincere compliments: “Good job on your art project, Jannell.” “Mrs. Hulbert, your lasagna rocks!” Or tell your sister (yes, your sister) she looks nice before she heads out the door. Statements like these (especially from a male) make the worry monster in our minds creep away.

GIRLS CONNECT WITH OTHERS BY TALKING
Think about it: You spend hours with your buds playing football and wrestling around in the park. This is how you bond with your friends. Girls relate to their friends by spending the same amount of time (and more) talking with friends. Every topic is covered from a new outfit to problems with family at home.

Question: Why do girls follow each other to the restroom?

Answer: To finish a conversation, or talk about something the whole group does not need to hear. If you want to get to know a girl, DON’T follow her to the ladies’ room! Ask a good question that leads to great conversation.

CHECKLIST
• Whether your style is clean-cut or grunge, strive to be at least moderately clean. Unless you’re coming off the Breakaway backpacking trip and haven’t showered in 10 days, you should be dirt-free and smell nice.

• Cologne. If you wear it, make sure the scent arrives and leaves an area about the same time you do.

• When talking to a girl, look at her face — she always notices when you look elsewhere.

• Ask good questions to find out more about her.

• Smile and laugh. This will make her smile and laugh, too.