For women wondering whether to break up with a man who takes you for granted, here’s what you need to hear from a man worth your time. Maybe not right away, but within, say, 3-6 months.
Otherwise, press the “Next” button. It’s for you and all the men waiting for you to be single again. Because if he doesn’t say certain phrases, he’s not the right guy for you.
Here are 15 phrases that good, high-value men often say to the women they love.
1. “I love you.”
This isn’t about sex, this isn’t about desire. When a man says “I adore you,” it means that you make him shine every time you walk into the room, even if he’s the man next to you. Whether it’s someone admiring you from six feet away, it means they’re happy that you just exist.
2. “You inspire me.”
A man who says you’re an inspiration to him will be influenced by the way you live your life, what you dedicate yourself to, the way you spend your time, the path you choose, and the way you treat those around you. It means that you love someone. This will make him want to be like you in every way.
3. “I respect you.”
When he wants a serious opinion on something, the first person that comes to mind is you. Whether you’re wondering if he’s being rude or wondering which TV show is better, saying he respects you will help him understand what you say. I can see that you value things.
4. “I love kissing you.”
Years from now, if a bad paragliding accident leaves you both paralyzed and unable to use your lower legs, he’ll still feel pretty good as long as he can kiss you as much as he wants. After all, it’s a kind of intimacy.
5. “I don’t want to change you.”
Yes, there are some things about you that he doesn’t understand or that he doesn’t really love. But you are you and everything else that comes with you, he will never want to lose. When he says he doesn’t want to change you, doesn’t want to disrupt the equation, just wants to help it grow.
6. “I accept your drama.”
You may have anger issues with your family or work that you are trying to overcome. Even if he’s a little tired, he can get through it. He might even support it. No one is 100% drama-free, but he respects that you’re fighting something.
7. “I love it when you scold me sometimes.”
He doesn’t necessarily approve of it, but he respects it. Even if he’s full of it, he enjoys knowing you’ll accept it. If he’s going to keep someone by his side, he wants to know that you’re not just into the first guy that shows up. He wants you to be less pushy and hold him to higher standards.
8. “I’m worried about you.”
This phrase is simple, but it shows that you won’t leave his thoughts, especially when he’s supposed to be thinking about something else. You are there when he is working, giving a presentation, watching a movie with his friends. Still, he can’t help but laugh.
9. “You fascinate me.”
You have his full attention. He doesn’t think about anyone else, only you. It’s not about work, family, or past affairs. The fact that he says he’s captivated just by your presence is proof that he’s a good man.
10. “I forgive you.”
When you act a little weird sometimes or blame him for things he didn’t do or say, he reminds you that you’re human. And as humans, we are allowed to make mistakes. Because with all the beauty you have brought into his life, he knows he still has a long way to go.
11. “I love you.”
He’s not afraid to say “I love you,” even though the last man you dated was never able to say it. He is telling you that you are amazing, that he wants to be more like you, and that he wants your futures to be forever intertwined. You’re a great person in his opinion, and he wants to help you be as authentic as possible.
12. “I can’t stop talking about you.”
You are not a little secret that he hides or hides from others. When he says this phrase, he means you are his favorite person on earth. He told his mother about you before you went on your first date. He immediately told his friends about you. You are a story he can tell over and over again.
13. “I can see a future with you.”
He might not say it right away for fear of scaring you, but if you’re someone he wants to be with, he envisions a future together. Men can be planners, they can plan, they can get ahead of themselves, but they want to do it all with you.
14. “I just need to hold you.”
Intimacy is more than just kissing and sex. When he says he wants to hold you, it shows that he wants to be close to you, next to you, and he can’t lie in bed without wrapping you up. It’s an urge inside him that he can’t ignore.
15. “Thank you.”
It’s only two words, but what he says means a lot. He appreciates you for being you, for being you, for your smile, for your laughter. He appreciates that you have a point of view and a strong sense of self, that you have standards, and that you get angry when something important happens.
He is happy that the universe created you. It makes him feel so much better about the world.
mark radcliffe He is a musician, author, and creative director whose byline has appeared in The Good Men Project, Huffington Post, Elephant Journal, Business Insider, McSweeney’s, Medium, and more.
This article was originally published at: good person project. Reprinted with permission from the author.