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 less direct way, by using words such as "might" or could" and asking with a rising intonation. By making requests in this way, find it easier to say "No" to the order, which leaves these women in a lower position than their co-workers.
             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 mentions about the double bind that women are placed in currently. If a woman speaks like a woman, softly with rising intonations, she appear...