Funny Facts about Women: 12 Surprising Things You Should Know

We rarely think of how women’s status has changed so drastically in the last century, but these funny facts about women can give us a sense of pride.

These eye-opening and funny facts about women might get your wheels spinning about what we can accomplish. We are frequently undermined and often undermine ourselves, but based on these facts, we are highly capable as well as entertaining.

As women become more active members of the society, and statistically, we see more female breadwinners each year, it’s fun to watch the facts about women change. Perhaps we are seeing more rapid change than in any other time in history, and perhaps we also are at the only time in history where we have the tools to quantify them.

1. The youngest CEO of a Fortune 500 company was a woman

marissa mayer yahoo

Yahoo set two new records when they hired Marissa Mayer as their CEO. Not only did they hire the youngest CEO of a Fortune 500 company, but they hired the youngest woman CEO of a Fortune 500 company as well. Marissa immediately revealed she was pregnant and stood up for her maternity leave time taking home a meager $36 million in 2012.

Not too shabby for a woman in her thirties, right? She is ranked as one of the most powerful business women in the world. If we look at the root of the word woman, it actually doesn’t have much to do with the way we use it today. Originally, it meant wife.

2. Women speak more words per day than the average man

So what can we make of this funny fact? Of course, there are exceptions to this rule, but for the most part I think we can accept it as true. As long as we are careful with our words and think about them without just talking about anything that pops into our minds, looks like our gender has been granted the gift of words.

The very first novel was actually credited to be written by a woman. While women are known to sometimes talk too much, we do know how to express our feelings. That is actually very valuable.

If you look at something called Tension Mitosis Syndrome, studied by Dr. John E. Sarno, it becomes evident that wearing your emotions on your sleeve can actually help reduce the amount of repressed negative emotions that your brain will subconsciously translate into physical pain in the body. ‘Talking it out’ might be a solution for chronic pain.

On the other hand, we have to be aware that it is important not to dump our problems on people all the time, because that can be downright annoying and unproductive, but there’s nothing wrong with talking your feelings out with a professional or talking to your close friends in moderation about them. Just remember to also talk about positive things and not just focus on your own problems.

3. Most of the questions women ask, they already know the answer to

Well isn’t that interesting? Women are actually looking to catch someone in a lie, and we might not even be aware of it. Are we naturally distrustful? Are we naturally protecting ourselves? Are we developing our natural intuition with this tactic?

What does this say about our communication style? I think we could be more direct in the way we speak, and not beat around the bush. I’m always very refreshed by women who say it like it is. They usually come across as rude, but I respect it. They make me laugh and save us all quite a bit of time.

An article in O (The Oprah Magazine) a few years ago, discussed how throughout history many wives of important men had premonitions before they were killed, and urged them not to go. Women are known to be extremely intuitive and this phenomenon is now being studied more widely by scientists.

A book called ‘The Intention Experiments’ by Lynne McTaggart covers scientific experiments done by Ivy League schools that deal with the science of thoughts. It’s a very interesting and thought provoking read to say the least.

4. Women have a higher life expectancy than men

It’s no secret that women often adhere to a healthy diet before men do. We start gaining weight before they do, and often, our stomachs are more sensitive. In the US, there are more elderly women over 85 than there are men, because we are outliving them. All the more reason to get our partners on board with taking better care of their health.

We have the opportunity to affect the lives of the men closest to us, whether it is our family, children or partners. Let’s not be mad at men for following the cultural trends of meat and potatoes, but coax them to adopt more healthy lifestyles so we can grow old together and enjoy eating at the same restaurants.

5. There are more women than men in the US

woman face created by the people on the street

A lot of times, the first thing that pops into women’s minds when we hear this, is that it will make dating harder. I’d like to play the devil’s advocate here and say the exact opposite. As we join together and make it a point to stand up for ourselves, educate ourselves, make sound judgments and make as much money as men, we will have our pick of the litter.

When it comes to how we view ourselves as women, a slight shift in perspective can change the way we carry ourselves and the opportunities that we think might be available. The way we speak about ourselves and our capabilities needs to be a language of support and confidence, not one of secondary importance in the working world.

6. In 1872, the first woman ran for US presidency, we got the right to vote in 1950

It wasn’t illegal to run for the presidential office, but it was illegal to vote. Go figure. We now have women in the military, congress, senate, and probably have another woman (Hillary Clinton) running for presidency.

We’ve come a long way since gaining the right to vote; now we just need to exercise it more. When you go to the polls, look around you and notice the ages of the people. If you see a disparity, be a voice for your community to get women out to vote. Use social media and bring it up at social gatherings. Remember, progress is a decision.

7. Women spend about one year deciding what to wear in their lifetime

The other day, I started thinking about how much time we spend getting our nails done, our hair done, sometimes getting our eyelashes done, getting spray tanned and all the other primping things we tend to do. I’m not saying men spend their time any more productively, but what if we gave up on some of our beauty appointments, and went to a library or Barnes and Noble.

When our looks fade, our minds will be there to hold us up. We can’t be models forever and we certainly want to set ourselves up for success, right? Where is the balance? We must dress for success but not in excess.

8. A woman may divorce her husband in Saudi Arabia if he doesn’t bring her coffee

This is just funny and probably not enforced. It’s kind of like the law in Vermont that makes it illegal to whistle under water. Who would enforce that? Is it even possible? This is just a funny reminder of how silly we get over things. When people make a big deal out of small issues, it can look a bit absurd, right? I know I do it, and have to put myself in check for making mountains out of molehills.

I do love my morning coffee, but I don’t expect anyone, man or woman, to get it for me. We don’t need to be entitled as women because it only bites us back. The more we make an effort to do things for ourselves, the more respect we conjure.

9. Women were not the first to wear heels

Did you know that heels were originally a men’s fashion trend? In England, men wore them to look taller. Women are said to have adopted the fashion trend in order to appear more masculine. Now, heals are not really used to make women look more masculine, but if you think about it, they do accentuate muscles, don’t they?

I also know someone that has a theory that they squish our toes in a way that affects our brain and affects the ability to think clearly. His argument was pretty convincing, I have to admit. Ever notice how much your feet hurt at the end of the day? Do you really think that is fair or necessary?

10. The first computer programmer is supposedly a woman, Ada Lovelace

Ada Lovelace

A recent movie that is up for awards called The Imitation Game reveals the man who invented the first digital computer. This movie depicts a woman, Joan Clarke, as being able to solve puzzles faster than the lead character. Ada Lovelace was born to Lord Byron in London and is said to have written the first computer program.

She is said to have written the first algorithm that was designed for a machine. Algorithms have changed everything about our own lives, because the internet and social media platforms are constantly adjusting user experience based on algorithms.

11. The average weight of a woman is 165 lbs

Depending on the nutritional veracity of the area and average height, this fact varies. But it is somewhat reassuring, because America has brainwashed most women into thinking they need to be around 110 pounds, and look like Victoria Beckham.

Let’s be real, we all have different builds, and no matter how healthy we eat, if we have a thicker bone structure, we won’t be healthy if we are too light. It’s important to realize how much advertising shapes our own perspective of ourselves, and let it go, because we are beautiful without those imposed conceptions of what beauty is.

Beauty is much more substantial than skinniness. Just as Ashton Kutcher said at the Teen Choice Awards, what’s attractive is kindness and intelligence.

12. Women have better memories than men

Research shows that we probably have more detailed memories and faster recall than men. Considering women do have a longer life expectancy, we have more to remember on average than men do. Sometimes focusing on the past is not necessarily to our advantage though, because we harbor on feelings that stress us out and create inflammation in the body.

Make it a point to focus only on positive things, and be more in the moment. Focus on the future more than living in the past. I think that replaying the past and talking about it stunts growth in certain ways. If you spend all your time mulling over he said-she said stuff, you will not only become victimized in your thinking, you won’t be able to put one foot in front of the other, and do something productive for yourself.

We need to develop a tough skin and let go of things that people say sometimes. There is a fine line between being walked over and being too pushy. We will seek that balance evermore.

It’s reassuring that some cultures believe a female created the world as opposed to the ‘him’ widely used today. But perhaps we could stop the battle and call the mysterious universal life force non-gender specific, and stop the petty disagreements between boys and girls. If you noticed, women make fun of their own kind a lot.

We make fun of women without realizing we are prolonging stereotypes by calling attention to the habits of women that promote disempowerment. Instead of calling another female out for something negative, why not build each other up and share compliments? If we are going to be less catty, it has to start with our own words.

Thanks, as always, for being a part of the community here on YouQueen, and we would love to hear your thoughts and insight below. Don’t forget to share this fun article with your mates.

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About the author

Shannon Y.

Shannon is a contortionist and yoga teacher that loves to inspire people to lead empowered and healthy lives. She writes practical advice for health and gives real world insights to empower women emotionally.

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  • I think out of the 12 supposedly surprising thing, only 2 was actually surprising the rest I already knew. Also, women got the right to vote in the US in 1919 but ratified in 1920 not 1950. Maybe another country gave women the right to vote in 1950 but the US gave that right a long time before that.