7 Tiny Things Wildly Strong, Successful Women Need From Their Men
How to help her shine.
DaniloAndjus | Canva There’s so much chatter out there about how the feminist movement has made women hard. How their success has made them too "alpha" or masculine to maintain a relationship and that’s why they’re single. Women are told we have to adapt to have it all, but when are we going to start the conversation about how men need to evolve to this sociological change as well? Yes, women can take responsibility and learn how to turn their alpha energy on and off as needed, but men could use some direction on how they can love and maintain a relationship with a driven and successful woman.
Here are 7 things wildly strong, successful women need from their men:
1. Participate in the decision-making
No matter how driven your woman is, she doesn’t want to make all the decisions. Being active in your relationship means making stupid and mundane decisions from what you’ll have for dinner to what you’ll do on Saturday night. When she asks for your opinion on those small decisions, don’t say you don’t care. Those small decisions add up, and that’s how you'll build her trust.
2. Be her support system
Her instincts are going to make it hard for her to ask you for help. When she doesn’t ask you for help, don’t feel rejected; instead, ask her what you can do — and don’t take "no" for an answer. Be a steady support system for her so she never has to stand alone.
3. Be your own strong support system
When you need help she’s going to try to fix it. It’s what she does. You have to stand on your own and let her know that you’ve got this when she tries to fix things. Don’t make it a habit to rely on her to do everything. Keep in mind, this doesn’t mean she can’t help you. She wants to, but she also wants to look to you as a source of strength and someone she can depend on.
4. Create a safe place for her to be vulnerable
She needs to have the ability to feel vulnerable. She wants to unleash her feminine energy into your masculinity but that requires her to feel safe. You create the feeling of safety by allowing her to unmask and be herself in a place where she is heard, not judged. Use your words wisely and let her be human — a woman — and have emotions and feelings without making her feel crazy and out of character.
5. Truly respect her
We’re taught that men should be respected and women should be cherished. It's not that simple. She has an opinion, she brings value to your conversations and she needs respect and admiration for her role in the world and your relationship.
6. Give her quality time with you
Time is in short supply when you're a driven and successful woman, so there’s nothing in this world that she’ll appreciate more than quality time with you. Make time for her while respecting her time by planning things in advance.
7. Don’t make her choose between you and her dreams
Support her dreams and aspirations and never make her choose. She shouldn’t have to pick between her career and her relationship with you. She really can have it all as long as she and you plan accordingly. If she gives up that drive she'll no longer be the woman you fell in love with in the first place. Don’t try to change her, just make it work.
Ravid Yosef is a dating and relationship coach. She is an established advice column writer, Certified NLP Practitioner, and Award-winning marketer.