When It Comes to Attitudes Toward Women, the Best Approach Is to Keep Your Distance

Generally speaking, people don’t know whether a woman has been raised on hard truths or coddled from childhood. No one really knows for sure. That’s why it’s hard for women to move forward. On the surface, everyone respects you, gives you special treatment, and factors in the fact that you’re a woman. In reality, though, they just leave you out of things.

So when you run into problems with women, the most self-serving move is to play the gentleman. That so-called gallantry isn’t about treating women as equals—it’s about self-protection. The unspoken message is: I’m not playing along. (In situations like these, men are quick to get implicated no matter what they do.)

When a man gets close to you, he usually has an agenda. If he doesn’t, a typical man will keep his distance or deliberately stay away.