One of the worse things that can happen to a man in a romantic or marital relationship is to be the victim of the 'happening relationship'.
For women, a relationship is always a dynamic 'happening' thing. Meaning that from their perspective, something is always happening in the relationship. Even if nothing noticeable is happening externally, something goes on in their minds and imaginations. A man can never be sure what it is that is going on in their minds. And the worst part of it is that, if something good or great is not happening in the relationship, the only other alternative is that something bad is happening. At least, that is how it is in the minds of most women.
Thus, there may be a very stable relationship, in which the man thinks both of them know where they stand, what is expected of them and that they are completely committed to each other. A man may go on quietly and happily fulfilling his part of the bargain - working hard, bringing home the bread, providing his woman with money, taking her to dinners and parties, doing his bit around the house, even doing and providing exactly what she has said she wants. And during this seemingly stable and steady domestic life, something turbulent could be brewing in the woman's mind and heart. She could be imagining that he no longer loves her or that she is no longer in love with him; she could think that he is neglecting her or taking her for granted or not valuing her enough or not doing enough for her; she could be wondering if he is having an affair or if she should have an affair; she might be questioning if he still finds her attractive and at the same time, critically evaluating him. The poor man may think that he is in a strong, steady relationship and that it is okay for him to sometimes not dress properly in the privacy of his own home, or sometimes show her his hairy ass, or kiss her with bad breath, or reveal his weaknesses and idiosyncrasies. Where as, the woman would be noticing and taking note of all these factors, and weighing them up in her constant evaluation of the relationship and her own life.
Thus, one fine day, out of the blue, the man is told that she is no longer in love with him, or that she no longer finds him attractive, or that she has been having an affair with someone, or that she is in love with somebody else, or that she wants to leave him. The poor guy never sees it coming. It takes time for the news to sink in, and the guy never fully learns what went wrong. Men think logically, where as there is often not much logic in the thoughts and actions of women. So, the man might try to logically understand why she did what she did, but he'd just fail at it, ending up feeling miserable, broken-hearted and losing a lot (especially if they were married and it ends in a divorce).
The end-scenarios I described above happen pretty often. I have noticed married women having affairs, while their husbands went about living the married life thinking that everything was fine in their family and home.
The unexpected, unknown and never understood "happening" in the mind/imagination of the woman, takes place in almost every romantic relationship out there. Every man is its victim at one time or the other. The end-result may not be the same as the ones I have described above - the woman may not always do something so drastic and dramatic as break the relationship or have an affair. But what happens most often is for the woman to be bitchy, moody, unhappy, complaining, nagging, arguing, fighting, uncooperative for no reason that the guy can fathom. How many men have not had to deal with this in a relationship?
The worst part is that, there is simply nothing a guy can do to avoid these things... except to avoid a steady romantic relationship itself. I mean, this "happening" in the mind of the woman, takes place no matter what the circumstances of the couple are. They may be rich or poor, healthy or ill, educated or uneducated, young or old, have kids or not, be married or not, the guy may be good or bad, he could be caring or not, he might provide all she wants or he might not. It just doesn't matter. The active imagination of the woman will see something or the other 'happening' in the relationship. And like I said, if the something that's happening is not positive or a happy thing, then it automatically defaults to being a negative and unhappy thing. As far as a relationship is concerned, there is no neutral ground in a woman's mind.
Have you been a victim of A happening relationship? Or do you know of someone who is? Leave a comment.
Showing posts with label Relationships. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Relationships. Show all posts
Thursday, November 30, 2006
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
Arguments and Relationships
Practically speaking, there is no place for arguments in any relationship. Most relationships which work in practical ways and sustain for a long time, have little or no arguments. Let me explain.
Definition of an argument: Any disagreement over a single topic, which goes beyond 4 back and forth sentences is an argument.
Eg: Y & XX are a couple, who want to buy a new car. Here's their conversation on how much to spend on a new car:
Y: We can afford to buy a new car which costs $35,000.
XX: No, we can only afford a car which costs $25,000.
Y: I just got this pay raise, we can afford the installments for a 35K car.
XX: We are expecting a baby in 6 months. We can only afford $25K or less.
Now, if this conversation goes beyond these four back and forth sentences with neither party giving in nor agreeing, it is an argument.
There is one of three ways this conversation could end:
1. One of the two persons might understand the other's point of view, agree with it and accept it.
2. One of the two persons might decide to compromise and let the other person have their way, despite not agreeing. "Let's agree to disagree, but let's compromise and move forward" principle.
3. Neither person agrees with the other nor compromises, and the back and forth sentences continue.
No. 1 is the ideal ending. No. 2 is the pragmatic ending. No. 3 is the argument.
In most relationships which work - personal or business, No. 1 and No. 2 happen very often. They are pretty common in the business world. If no. 2 (compromise) happens more often than no. 1 (agreement), especially if one person compromises more often than the other, the relationship might not last very long. We all like to be in relationships in which we can agree with the other person, in which the other person validates us and supports us.
No. 3 (argument) usually leads to a troublesome relationship. It is extremely rare that a conversation which goes beyond 4 back and forth sentences (i. e., turns into an argument) has a productive ending. More often than not, nobody agrees or accepts, and compromises are rare and gruding, if at all. In most cases, the compromises are vague, temporary, fragile, and turn into future landmines for the relationship.
As such, arguments are a big waste of time and energy. Precious time and energy which could have been used to achieve something more productive, in a better relationship. Arguments serve no practical purpose. In fact, they are extremely harmful to personal health and relationship health.
So, in any relationship, it is best not to argue at all. If a conversation goes beyond 4 back and forth sentences, simply surrender, move forward and put it totally out of your mind (no chance at all of using it as future ammunition), if you can. If you can't surrender or move on or put it out of your mind, simply pull out of the transaction or relationship.
Definition of an argument: Any disagreement over a single topic, which goes beyond 4 back and forth sentences is an argument.
Eg: Y & XX are a couple, who want to buy a new car. Here's their conversation on how much to spend on a new car:
Y: We can afford to buy a new car which costs $35,000.
XX: No, we can only afford a car which costs $25,000.
Y: I just got this pay raise, we can afford the installments for a 35K car.
XX: We are expecting a baby in 6 months. We can only afford $25K or less.
Now, if this conversation goes beyond these four back and forth sentences with neither party giving in nor agreeing, it is an argument.
There is one of three ways this conversation could end:
1. One of the two persons might understand the other's point of view, agree with it and accept it.
2. One of the two persons might decide to compromise and let the other person have their way, despite not agreeing. "Let's agree to disagree, but let's compromise and move forward" principle.
3. Neither person agrees with the other nor compromises, and the back and forth sentences continue.
No. 1 is the ideal ending. No. 2 is the pragmatic ending. No. 3 is the argument.
In most relationships which work - personal or business, No. 1 and No. 2 happen very often. They are pretty common in the business world. If no. 2 (compromise) happens more often than no. 1 (agreement), especially if one person compromises more often than the other, the relationship might not last very long. We all like to be in relationships in which we can agree with the other person, in which the other person validates us and supports us.
No. 3 (argument) usually leads to a troublesome relationship. It is extremely rare that a conversation which goes beyond 4 back and forth sentences (i. e., turns into an argument) has a productive ending. More often than not, nobody agrees or accepts, and compromises are rare and gruding, if at all. In most cases, the compromises are vague, temporary, fragile, and turn into future landmines for the relationship.
As such, arguments are a big waste of time and energy. Precious time and energy which could have been used to achieve something more productive, in a better relationship. Arguments serve no practical purpose. In fact, they are extremely harmful to personal health and relationship health.
So, in any relationship, it is best not to argue at all. If a conversation goes beyond 4 back and forth sentences, simply surrender, move forward and put it totally out of your mind (no chance at all of using it as future ammunition), if you can. If you can't surrender or move on or put it out of your mind, simply pull out of the transaction or relationship.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)