5 Things Your Guy Needs To Hear

It’s incredible the amount of ways we can express our love to someone — a quick look over the five love languages (words of affirmation, acts of service, receiving gifts, quality time, and physical touch) allows us to understand our own natural tendencies with expressing affection, and those of others in our lives.

Maybe your guy loves a home-cooked meal — we’ve all heard the age-old saying, “The best way to a man’s heart is through his stomach,” which, by the way, I actually think is true of everyone. Or maybe what he craves is a soft back scratch after a long day. But even with all the different ways we can show our devotion, there are a few things every guy out there would love to hear his girl say.

“You look really good today.”

Compliments on our physical appearance make everyone feel good about themselves, as well as about the person who complimented them. Women are often given the lion’s share of such compliments (I mean, we do invest more time and effort in our hair, makeup, and style), but what we don’t realize is that men have just as many insecurities as women — whether they’re tall enough, fit enough, strong enough — and need reassurance from their partner that they are, in fact, attractive to us. If you notice he’s been working out, dressing differently, or trying out a new hairstyle, a compliment will mean the world to him.

“You’re so good at that.”

While we all like to be given a pat on the back for a job well done, hearing this from his significant other will likely mean quite a bit to our guy. Men often place much of their value in how useful, effective, and needed they are — even with more women entering the workforce, men are still regarded as the primary financial providers. So it’s safe to say, it’d be a huge confidence boost to hear us rave about how skilled he is at something.

“Thank you for what you do.”

It’s important in any relationship to take the time to acknowledge what the other person does for us. And in romantic relationships, it’s even more essential; whatever our partner does for us isn’t for their own gain, but rather, out of love. Whether he washes the dishes and takes out the trash, works long days at a demanding job, or offers us endless support in our dreams, taking the time to let him know that we see and appreciate what he does for us, the sacrifices he makes (both big and small), is a simple yet meaningful way to thank him for the way he loves us.

“How are you doing?”

It’s an unfortunate truth that young men aren’t encouraged to delve into their emotions and talk through them — instead, a man’s emotions and mental health are regularly disregarded, ignored, and joked about. In a society that perpetuates the idea that men don’t have emotions, it’s probably a rarity to hear a simple “How are you doing?”. But as his significant other, we have the ability to become a safe place for him, where he can, likely for the first time, experience having his feelings tended to, spoken through, and cared about.

“What can I do for you?”

We’re all used to the idea that men ought to treat their women like a treasure, planning dates to take her out on, fixing her coffee in the morning, or buying her flowers just because. But if we’d like him to do that for us, shouldn’t we return the favor? It’s really easy to let a guy take all the initiative in the relationship (I mean, it’s no secret that we like to be pursued), but taking a moment to ask what we can do for him, from planning a date at a new restaurant he’d love to getting him a new shirt because he’d look handsome in it, will mean a lot to him.

Closing Thoughts

These five phrases seem so simple and easy to say — but they’re bound to hold far more meaning to the man receiving them.