Behind a great man…

Lately I’ve been witnessing an interesting fact: more and more, men go out shopping accompanied by the important women in their lives, be them girlfriends, fiances or wives. We’ve all heard the saying “behind every great man there’s a great woman”, which in fact has proven to be an unrefutable truth for many famous, powerful and successful men throughout history.

I believe most men will agree that a woman’s touch makes a huge difference in so many aspects of a man’s life. However, what I’ve been seeing recently goes a bit beyond that so called “woman’s touch”… Ladies, in case you’re reading this, I urge you not to get me wrong as I’m not trying to present a sexist point of view nor call upon male empowerment, so please bear with me as I state my case.

The other day I was out shopping when suddenly I found myself next to this young couple: the guy started browsing through the items and set apart those he fancied the most - meanwhile his wife was checking out other pieces at the opposite end of the store. She comes back and the dialogue that followed was something along this line:

• Him - Honey I really love these three…
• Her - Humm…don’t like this pattern nor the collar on the others. Check the ones I have here.
• Him - Well, I actually liked those…
• Her - These will look better on you, take them instead.

A few more minutes down the line and the guy ended up purchasing what the wife had picked out for him. Now, you might be thinking there’s a chance I ran into a somewhat peculiar couple but mind you, this was not an isolated event. Now, I too like to hear my girlfriend’s take on what I buy, especially when she gives me a thumbs up, but taking into account your better half’s opinion is quite different than letting her call all the shots…

Photo by Ellen von Unwerth for GQ

Relationships are hard work, they require equal commitment and compromise from both parts in order to last. There’s no doubt that men like to please their loved ones. Yet, to do so, they need not renounce their personality and individual sense of style…this is such an important aspect in a man’s life, the ability to make a stand and choose the image he wishes to present to the world. 

So guys, be opened to your girl’s opinion and guidance, pull off that particular outfit she loves when taking her out to somewhere special, but don’t do it at the expense of your own identity and style. 

And girls, bear in mind that most men are helpless and rely on your advice and support for so many things in life, so why not let them have it their way on this issue? Who knows, maybe you’ll find out he’s quite a dapper fellow who’ll become more confident and comfortable in his own skin, which can’t be a bad thing right?

Photo by Ellen von Unwerth for GQ