“I love that you get cold when it’s 71 degrees out. I love that it takes you an hour and a half to order a sandwich. I love that you get a little crinkle above your nose when you’re looking at me like I’m nuts. I love that after I spend the day with you, I can still smell your perfume on my clothes. And I love that you are the last person I want to talk to before I go to sleep at night. And it’s not because I’m lonely, and it’s not because it’s New Year’s Eve. I came here tonight because when you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.”
—Harry Burns, When Harry Met Sally

With the media being set up the way it is now, we are easily exposed to many ideal ways that we wish our lives could be. In this case, it is the case of love and how we want to be treated by our significant other. We see how the characters in the movies are being treated, whether it's in a good or bad way. From this and of course the people around us in our lives, we have developed an image in our minds of how we wish to be with our significant other. We know how we want to be treated and loved, but why is it that we always find ourselves settling for something that we don't want? Why is it that we settle for something less, knowing that we want more and we deserve better? Why do we even settle in the first place?

Maybe it is because you think you ask for too much. Maybe you think that your expectations are out of the boundaries of what a "normal relationship" should be, but in reality there is no such thing as a "normal relationship." One relationship cannot define another. Each relationship is unique in its own special way, and that is what you have to accept. And when you do accept that, it does not mean that you take in actions that you do not deserve. There is a boundary you need to create yourself from letting people take away what you deserve. Don't ever think you are asking for too much. Don't ask for things. Show who you are, what you mean, and what you think you should deserve. This is the time that you will find yourself getting something that you've asked for, but this time, without actually asking for it.

So if you are this person - the person who is questioning why you are settling and forgetting what you really deserve - remember this...

You deserve surprises just because seeing you smile makes the person smile.

You deserve someone who respects you as a person. Do not let anyone use you.

You deserve someone to be there for you not just when you need it.

You deserve someone who doesn't complete you, but fills in the gaps with you.

You deserve someone who is willing to make sure that you are not spending a second of your birthday alone.

You deserve someone who is willing to make an effort to see you, even it it means going out of their way to see you for a little.

You deserve someone who is willing to walk halfway with you. You can give as much as you want, but if the person is taking and not giving, you deserve better.

You deserve someone who reminds you when you doubt yourself. This person will encourage you to chase your crazy dreams.

You deserve all the cliches that you've ever wanted. They make the cliche seem so real.

You deserve someone who takes the crazy out of you, but also puts the crazy in you.

You deserve to cry from laughing so hard endlessly, and when you look back, you continue to laugh because you forgot what initially started making you laugh.

You deserve someone who lets you be yourself. They let you be yourself, but they also let you better yourself with them. You both push each other on. You're not being hold back from being yourself.

You deserve someone who truly loves you, not someone who loves you when they want to or when they feel lonely.

You deserve to be happy. You deserve someone who does not make you settle your standards, but make you want to grow up to your own expectations to treat them just as well.

So stop lowering your standards and stop yourself from settling. Ever. At any point of your life, whether with your significant other or with your friends, remember what you deserve, and never settle for what you know could be better.

― Mandy Hale