Have you ever been told that you would not be good at something because of your gender or age or race? The above statements are all examples ofstereotypes, some overt and some subliminal. There appears to be a strong, even if unconscious, link between our cognition and emotion, and stereotyping can affect us even when we rationally dismiss it.

To prove this, Maryjane Wrage of Smith College used an MRI brain scan in testing the typical stereotype that men have more spatial ability. With women volunteers, one group was told that women do better on a Tetris-type test than men while others were informed that men do better on this type of puzzle. The result was that those women exposed to the negative stereotype made 14% more errors even while they denied that they were influenced by the claim. The scan showed the interaction between the areas of anxiety and spatial ability. Just having to check off a gender box prior to the start of an exam can affect the outcome because at some point we have all absorbed messages that implied limitations.

In a recent blog post I commented on how mind influences affected physiological responses. Now we see that it is not just physical results that can be evoked by suggestion. It may be impossible to separate an emotional reaction from a cognitive exercise, even when we do not consciously believe the statement and do not think we are allowing it to affect us. Be aware of the messages around you. You CAN be an organized person and an expert at time management. There is nothing gender specific about the ability to achieve a high level of productivity.