How Men Overcompensate When Their Manliness Is Threatened

Photo by Abby Savage on Unsplash

Breaking gender roles in stereotypical relationship settings sounds easy. But it’s not. Not for all of us. Without realizing it, we can fall back into outdated societal paradigms.

Let me give you a personal example. When I was young and in a fresh relationship, I felt my manliness threatened by the thought of not being handy enough. My parents are both teachers, they’ve never been handy themselves. Therefore, I didn’t learn much of anything in that regard during my childhood.

My girlfriend back in the day came from a very handy family. Her father knew everything, it seemed. So, what did I do? I oversold my competence in handy work. To appear more manly to her. I told her how I had renovated my old place by myself. I assured her of my talents in painting, laying flooring or tiles.

Instead, I could have taken the time to learn those things from my girlfriend or her father. But I was too threatened by this “loss” of manliness to even try.

Where did lying take …