We have all witnessed the #relationshipgoals trend that has quickly taken over our news feeds. If you spend a few minutes on Facebook, you will see a collage of pictures of some random couple reading “Relationship Goals”. When you scroll down your Instagram feed your friend posts another random picture of a guy with veiny arms reading “What every girl wants in a man”. You jump on twitter hoping for a funny meme but instead get a picture of some celebrity couple walking and holding hands captioned “Me when I grow up”.
So what does this really say about how our society views relationships? Have they merely been reduced to standards set by pictures of people we don’t even know? The relationship goals we as a social media driven society have set for ourselves are impossible to maintain in a real and genuine relationship. We are setting ourselves up for failure in our own relationships simply because we have a standard set by a fake perception of someone else’s relationship.
How can we change the way we see relationships when our Facebook page is filled with ideologies of “perfect” love? There are six social media #relationshipgoals that should be put to rest in 2017.
1. The couples on your newsfeed do not have a perfect relationship
It is tempting to say that you want the kind of relationships that you see on your social media because on the outer layer they seem perfect. You see the couple always posted pictures and saying cute things about the other and you could only hope that your relationship was more like that. Stop. You have no idea what is behind the scenes of that photo. Remember that the people in that picture fight, argue, make mistakes, and sometimes dislike the other.
2. Stop basing your relationship standards on Celebrities
First off, very few of celebrity relationships last. We shouldn’t all be heartbroken that Brad and Angelina called it quits. We knew nothing about their relationship and yet we are still trying to take sides or figure out what went wrong. If you take a step back you will realize how crazy that is.
3. Don’t retweet pictures of women with tons of gifts from their significant other
This puts strain on the man or woman to spend a lot of money on their significant other. They think they have to spend money to earn your love. It is unfair to put obligation on your significant other and burden them with money responsibilities.
4. Don’t Intagram collages of people holding hands and call it goals
You don’t even know these people and you already think their relationship is amazing. Holding hands is normal for most relationships even friendships.
5. Stop posting pictures of the perfect body type
This only makes your significant other feel insecure. Or if you are single this body type may hinder you from finding someone because you are expecting a particular look or style.
6. Do not enforce a stereotype
Men are emotional and woman are allowed to be strong. End of story.
The true relationship goals are the couples that we know have made it through and still show us what love looks like. Do not base your relationship off of one you know nothing about. A real relationship goal is showing your significant other unconditional love and support because in the end that is what makes a successful relationship.
