Not all relationships are meant to be. Men and women alike experience romantic woes and blunders, but there are many mistakes both genders frequently make. Even seemingly small mistakes can be enough to end a relationship. For women, there are 18 common mistakes to avoid when dating men.
Lack of Communication
Women are regularly accused of not being communicative enough, and this is often what ends their relationships. Men are known for being more concise and straightforward, but women sometimes struggle to say what they really mean. When communication breaks down, the relationship suffers.
Ignoring Red Flags
Red flags exist to warn us that a relationship isn’t healthy, but too many people ignore them. Some women struggle to see red flags because many destructive male behaviors are normalized or even romanticized by society, such as aggression, possessiveness, and arrogance. Ignoring red flags can lead women into very toxic relationships.
Trying to ‘Fix’ Them
People won’t change unless they want to, so why do women continue trying to ‘fix’ the men they date? According to HuffPost, it gives them a sense of purpose and comfort. Women are also more likely to be the nurturing partners, which can actually be a mistake when they get stuck in dead-end relationships.
Rushing Into Things
Even if you think it’s love at first sight, rushing into things is never a good idea. Women are usually more likely to make this mistake because society expects them to settle into committed relationships, whereas men are allowed to ‘play the field’. But rushing things is a quick way to end them.
Sharing Too Much With Friends
We all love sharing things with our friends, but some things should be kept private. Men often complain about their female partners oversharing personal relationship details with their friends. Women mean no harm by this, but it’s still a terrible mistake that makes their partners feel unnecessarily judged and scrutinized.
Changing Themselves
Trying to change a man is enough of a mistake, but women changing themselves for their relationship is even worse. Compromising personal values, drastically changing their appearances, quitting jobs, and parting ways with friends are all common mistakes women make with men who want to control who they are.
Not Prioritizing Time Together
No matter how busy you are, spending quality time with your partner is essential. Women sometimes underestimate just how important this time together is, which can cause them to neglect their relationships. They often don’t notice the damage until it’s too late and the relationship has broken down.
Accepting Incompetence
If you spend any time on social media, you’ll have heard the phrase ‘weaponized incompetence’. Verywell Mind defines it as a strategy to avoid responsibility and confirms that men are likelier to engage in it than women. When women shoulder all the physical and mental burdens, they perpetuate this incompetence.
Isolating Themselves
Women are regularly warned about having relationships with men who isolate them from their friends and family, but it’s sadly still common. Many women start to drift away from their loved ones when they get into relationships with men, which leaves them without any support if things go wrong.
Overcompensating
Many women try to fix things by overcompensating when a relationship starts going south. If their partners put in little effort, they put in twice as much to try and balance things out. However, the increased emotional burden is exhausting and leads to resentment. This is a common relationship death knell.
Lack of Appreciation
Men and women are both capable of being ungrateful, and it’s almost always a relationship killer. Society regularly mocks men for looking after their partners by calling them ‘feminine’, so when they do thoughtful things, they mean them. Having their partners show a lack of appreciation really dampens their spirits.
Hurtful Jokes
You should be able to playfully tease your partner but draw the line at hurtful jokes. Sometimes, women don’t realize they’ve gone too far with their teasing because their partners don’t tell them, so more self-awareness is needed. Men can often be self-deprecating, too, so it’s important not to fuel further insecurities.
Expecting Too Much Too Soon
It’s normal to want marriage and children, but sometimes, women expect these massive commitments too early in the relationship. According to Psychology Today, women expect to marry but often don’t, while men often don’t plan to marry but regularly do. Being too eager at the start could be to blame for this.
Getting Paranoid
Paranoia is one of the biggest relationship killers. Even if you’ve got no evidence that your partner has done something wrong, paranoia eats away at your mutual trust. Women are taught that men get bored quickly, so it’s common for them to get paranoid and stifle their partners.
Projecting Insecurities
We all get insecure, but our insecurities can cause us to sabotage our happiness. Perhaps due to paranoia or societal expectations, women frequently project their insecurities onto male partners, frustrating them. Insecurities can also lead to jealousy and clinginess, contributing to toxic relationship dynamics and driving partners apart.
Undervaluing Themselves
You can’t love someone else if you don’t love yourself, so you need to know your own value before you start dating. Too often, women settle for the first man they start a committed relationship with, undervaluing themselves to be happy. However, being picky isn’t bad, so women shouldn’t be ashamed of it.
Expecting Them to Read Minds
Another communication mistake women make in relationships is expecting men to read their minds. Playing games like this can set your partner up for failure and punish them for something out of their control. Communicating directly and telling him what you need and want is much healthier.
Wasting Time
Sometimes, you need to accept that a relationship isn’t working and end it sooner rather than later. Too many women make the mistake of wasting time on men who won’t give them a fulfilling relationship, which makes it harder for them to leave and find the true love of their lives.
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