Lesson Learned: The List

We all have them--the list. No, not the list of people you've slept with. (That's a topic for another day). But the list of criteria that a man must meet before you consider dating him. This may look familiar:

He must be 6'6'' tall.
He must have a six pack.
He must be employed by one of 3 organizations (the NFL, the NBA, or the MLB).
He must have a degree.
He must have a salary that ends in at least 5 zeros.
He must own a nice house.
He must drive one of the Bs (a benz, a beamer or a bentley)
He must have never been married.
He must not have any kids.

Ladies, its time to let the "he musts" go. You must be crazy to think that a man with every quality on your list actually exists. Its not about settling, its about common sense. You may be missing out on the person that was born to love you because you adhere so strictly to your list that you never give him the time of day. Maybe he's a little shorter than you planned. Maybe he's still working on his six pack (lets not fool ourselves, we are too). Maybe instead of the letters NFL behind his name, its Esq. Its time to break out those sharpies and mark those superficial requirements off the list. Think long and hard about what's important to you in life--or what should be important to you in life. Your list should be full of criteria that demonstrate quality and character. So what if he's a father, is he a good one? Does he treat his mom like a queen? Is he ambitious? Does he make you laugh?

Don't fall into the trap of holding a man to a higher standard than you hold yourself to. Maybe by revising your list, you'll receive some love. Some of us would've never believed that trading in our need for a million dollar celebrity athlete could've been the best thing we've ever done. For those that have found their 9-5 working man with a heart of gold...well, we couldn't be happier.