Unfortunately, not the pay gap, although hopefully that will improve soon too!
While some people choose to gift flowers, jewelry, or cute nic nacs to their mothers or wives on special occasions, others choose the route of technology. And do you want to know why? Although we’re all aiming for gender equality, it’s no secret that women still have it rougher than men, and technology can help change that!
Most men like to think they put in their fair share of work in at home, doing dishes and the like, but studies don’t agree. The 2016 Australian Census shows that men put in less than 5 hours per week on domestic work while women spend 5-14 hours! And while those numbers may differ here in the US, I’m willing to bet they’re pretty similar.
So how is technology going to help close this gap?
By making tasks easier and by making stress more manageable!
For making tasks easier…
While we’re still quite a ways off from a totally smart home (at least for us with a middle class income), there are still a lot of smart devices that are helping us work towards that. Take Amazon’s Echo for example, or Google Home, for example.
These personal assistant type devices can’t do the laundry for us, but they can help us in other ways. Like adding items to our grocery lists, turning lights on or off (if you have smart lights), changing the temperature in the house (again, if you have a smart thermostat), walking you through recipes, ordering pizza, and so much more! Are these things going to be life-changing? Probably not, but asking your new personal assistant to tackle these menial tasks can save you a few minutes, which can add up at the end of the day!
Keeping us relaxed and focused…
A little while back we talked about wearable technology for relaxation (if you miss that, check them out here). These are all devices that can help us meditate, allow our minds to relax, and focus. When we’re calm and focused, it’s amazing how much easier (and less annoying) household tasks can become.
But if you’re not into shelling out the big bucks for wearable tech, there are also apps that aim to do the same thing: create a feeling of inner calm and focus. Like this appropriately named app: Calm.
So while we’re still working to make things truly fair for men and women, (guys, we’ve got to step up at home!!), these technologies can help make life a little better in the meantime.