Husbands have selective hearing. It’s something many women complain about. It was highlighted recently by an author friend.
She had been playing a radio interview with another author who both of us knows from online. At almost the precise moment the interview ended an email came though on the computer from this author being interviewed. ‘Who’s the email from?’ she asked the son sitting at the computer.
He told her.
‘Oh do you correspond with her?’ her husband piped up, amazed.
My author friend gave that roll of the eyes and groan all wives know when their other half comes out with something like this, since she’d already told him about the other author and her recent big award. At the time it appeared he’d been listening, as they’d had a conversation about it. So it hadn’t been a case of him not hearing.
Does it sound familiar, ladies? It did to me. I admit that type of thing has happened in our house too.
I’m sure you know what I mean after someone tells your husband some news. You say, ‘But I’ve already told you this,’ and then you get this incredulous look.
Men and selective hearing, I know it’s not just my author friend and I. I hear too many similar comments from other women to not believe it exists. And yes there are myriad jokes about men and selective hearing.
So why don’t men listen to what we tell them? It could be they are busy doing something else and they are thinking about that instead of what you are telling them. They may even respond to your words, but the response is automatic. It doesn’t mean they’re taking your words in.
They could quite simply think what you are telling them is not all that important, so their memory doesn’t retain it. I am constantly amazed at the difference between the things Mick remembers about events we have both participated in or conversations we had and what I remember. I suspect it’s a basic male/female difference.
Join me next time for more thoughts on this subject and what we can do about it. Guys, I’m happy to hear your thoughts on this too.
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