Chivalry 101
Chivalry 101: Chivalry is not about gender inequality, men and women have the same intrinsic value, it’s about showing a woman you respect and value her through your actions. The basics are simple enough: reach a door first, open it, and hold it open until a woman walks through, open and close a car door for a woman, help her with her coat, stand up if she comes to or leaves a meal table, walk her to her door, offer to carry bags, compliment her honestly, offer an arm to hold on to if you’re walking, offer your jacket if she looks cold, and put yourself between her and danger. These are all fairly well-known, but they’re less important than real chivalry, the kind that’s deeper.Be honest with her. In order to have an honest relationship and in order to really demonstrate that you respect a woman, you need to show her that you can and will be truthful with her. This is a central foundation to every healthy relationship. Treat her as your equal. Despite what you may have heard, men and women are truly equal. Neither men nor women deserve to be treated as weaklings or emotional messes or what have you. Share in responsibilities, discuss all decisions, and just generally be sure that you demonstrate that you see her as an equal partner. Be the best you for both her and yourself. We all make mistakes, we can all lose track of what’s important, but you owe it to yourself and to your significant other to be a healthy, happy person. Exercise, eat right, get enough sleep, manage your stress, deal with problems like a quick temper, see a therapist if you have problems to work out, just work on yourself to be better. Finally, communicate. No one is a mind reader, so a healthy relationship requires real, honest, consistent lines of communication be open.