This week, we're hearing from William, who just proposed to my cousin, Allie, last Friday :) I am so happy to call him her fiancé as I introduce him on my blog! He's sharing about how you know when you've found the one, which is especially timely in his life.
And, in case you've missed the other Five Facts from a Guy Friday posts, read them here.
{Allie & William live in Santa Monica, which is way, way too far away. But really fun to visit :)}
1. The truer you are to yourself, the closer you grow. Everybody puts on a front in the early stages of dating and a relationship. It’s only natural that you want to present the best version of yourself. Over time you get more comfortable letting down your guard and showing your true colors. With the right person, your weirdness and idiosyncrasies will bring you closer together. Several previous posts have mentioned men want ladies to be true to themselves, to wear less makeup rather than more, to show us your weirdness. In the right relationship, the more you let the other person in, the more intimacy you will build, and the more fun you will have together.
2. You need the same amount of each others' time, or at least understand your differences. This one is huge. A relationship that is unbalanced in terms of how much time each partner wants and needs to spend with the other will be immensely difficult. A person’s need for their own time and space can vary dramatically, as can their need for time together with their significant other. Needing your own time and space doesn’t mean you love the other person any less, but people sometimes need to be by themselves to collect their thoughts and recharge. There is no worse feeling than thinking your partner doesn’t want to spend time with you, and that’s why this is such an important issue. Understanding each other’s needs in these departments is crucial for a happy and fulfilling relationship where you can be comfortable in spending time together while also getting your important alone time to recharge.
3. You both work together for the relationship. Let’s get super cliché here for a quick second. Relationships are hard work, and it’s important that you are both working on the relationship together. Some people have a tendency to get complacent in relationships. I certainly have in the past. But really, when a relationship is right, you both enjoy growing together, and that is not always a smooth process. There will be bumps and challenges and obstacles along the way, and knowing that you have a teammate who will proactively work through these challenges with you makes these growing pains much more manageable and part of the adventure. When you’ve found someone you work well with and you share the commitment to put in the work a relationship takes, you will find the things life throws at you that are pitfalls for other relationships become much smoother in yours.
4. Their people become your people and it’s awesome. One of the most fun parts of a relationship is getting to know your partner through other people in their lives. As a relationship progresses you meet the friends and the family and the high school friends and the extended family, and it’s a great way to discover all sorts of things you wouldn’t otherwise have known about that person. When a relationship is right, this is a really fun process. You feel your friend network double as you meet people for the first time who you’ve heard countless stories about and are fast friends. You gain an extended family that cares for you and you think hopefully might not be as crazy as your own. Who a person surrounds themselves with speaks volumes about that person, and being embraced by and embracing the people in your partner’s life is a wonderful feeling and a great sign you’ve found the right person.
5. The right person inspires you to be your best, for both of you. Part of what makes relationships difficult is that we are constantly changing. Interests and passions ebb and flow as do a person’s priorities. This is a huge part of why relationships take work – to be sure they evolve with the changes to your personalities and lives together. The right partner will challenge and inspire you to grow and excel outside of your comfort zone as your lives together grow. You should return the favor by challenging and inspiring them, and also by striving to be your best so you can be the best possible partner. At the end of the day, your relationship will be as strong as the two of you work to make it, and by challenging each other to be the best version of yourselves and committing to work towards this end, you will give your relationship the best chance to succeed. If you’ve found a person who will share this commitment with you, never let them go!
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i'd loooove to hear from you! you make my day! <3