Everyone has habits that irritate their significant other. This is almost inevitable when you spend a great deal of time around another person. No matter how much you love them, you are not going to agree on everything which inevitably leads to at least a little bit of friction between the two of you. Normally those habits are small, and many of them are easy to change. For the most part, you are unlikely to even know that you are doing something frustrating until your partner asks you to cease or change your behavior. After all, everyone has different pet peeves. That said, there are some things that are all but guaranteed to drive your significant other up the wall. It is always dangerous to generalize, but there are some habits that are common in women that have men about ready to tear their hair out. Women do not always even realize that these things are bothering their significant other, and they may be reluctant to change them even if they do. After all, these are minor issues right? Well, they may seem minor, but it can be the little things that make or break a relationship. With that in mind, here are seven common habits that drive him crazy in the worst possible way.
Choosing to wear uncomfortable shoes.
Women tend to buy entirely into the idea that pain is the cost of beauty. This is apparent in both the prevalence of horrifically strict if not dangerous diets, plastic surgery and waxing body hair. A more everyday example, however, would be a woman’s shoes. Men are constantly baffled by how a woman can wear high-heels and not break her face. Women, of course, tend to keep this secret to themselves and simply smile mysteriously at how they manage to look good while walking on sky high stilettos. Unfortunately, those sexy heels are not usually comfortable to walk in. This may not be a problem when you and your man are simply going to the theater or a nice dinner. If you know that you two are planning to walk around the town square looking at Christmas decorations, choose comfortable shoes. It drives men crazy when women cut short walks, dates or anything else because they chose to wear shoes they could not walk in. Ladies, save the stilettos for that fine French restaurant. When you expect to be walking, throw on the boots you already broke in.Asking trap questions.
“So, do you notice anything different?” “Does this make me look fat? I know it does, doesn’t it?” “What do you think of this style? I want your honest opinion!” “Did you like my hair better when it was long?” These sorts of questions set off alarm bells, klaxons and air raid sirens in men’s brains. They are well aware that there is no right answer to those questions. No matter what they say, they are going to pay for it. This drives men crazy. Why would a person insist on asking a loved one questions that they know are simply going to make them mad?
Men generally do not ask such trap questions, or if they ask similar questions, they are honestly looking for an answer. Women tend to have a set idea about what the correct answer is to such questions and then they get mad when men do not say it. Women themselves may be vaguely aware that there is not even a right answer to such questions. Yet, they ask them anyway. There is no reason to do this to your significant other. If you ask for an opinion, do not get angry when you are given one. If he did not notice the highlights in your hair, do not make a big deal out of it. There are far more important things in life.
Doing makeup in public.
On some level, men understand that women like to wear makeup when they go out. It makes women feel more beautiful, and men are usually willing to support whatever makes their lady feel happier and more confident. Men may not quite understand how long it takes to put on makeup or why a woman requires half a dozen tubes of different skin colored liquids, but they do know that it can take a while for a woman to put on all of her makeup. When a woman is done, however, men generally expect her to be done. It drives men crazy to look over and see a woman holding a compact mirror and fixing her makeup in public. For one, it is rude since you are not paying attention to him when he is talking to you. It also gives the appearance of extraordinary vanity, and generally, men neither notice nor care about a woman’s makeup. Men actually tend to prefer less makeup on women. That said, they know women like to wear it. All they ask is that if you are going to fix your makeup, please do it in the bathroom instead of in the middle of the sidewalk.Stealing what is his.
Almost everyone knows and agrees that stealing is bad. That said, people do an awful lot of “stealing” from their partner. You help yourself to their snacks in the cabinet, their coat when you cannot find your own, their phone when yours is in the other room and their computer when yours has a low battery. Women, however, tend to help themselves to more of their significant other’s actual stuff than the other way around. Women are more likely to “borrow” their partner’s shirts, jackets, sweatshirts and scarves simply because a man cannot fit into most of a woman’s things, and many people find something comforting about wearing a hoodie that is too big for them. Men can find it irritating to open their closet to find their significant other has helped herself to his clothing or to have her steal his hat off his head, but there are few places such liberties are more annoying to men than with food. Women have a bizarre tendency to claim they do not want fries with their meal, dessert or something else unhealthy. Then, they help themselves to their boyfriend or spouse’s fries or dessert. They want “just one” or “just a bite,” but often end up eating almost half. It drives men crazy especially if the thing the woman is stealing originally came with her meal, and she said she did not want any. Men order fries or chocolate cake because they want to eat it. If you wanted some, why not simply say so and order your own?
“Fine” and “nothing.”
There are few words that terrify a man more than “fine” and “nothing.” Women often claim that men are completely unable to read between the lines to see how a woman is really feeling, but men are not stupid. They know that when a woman says curtly, “I’m fine” or “It’s nothing,” things are not fine, and there is something wrong. Unfortunately, men usually do not know what the issue is and thus have no idea if it is their fault or something they can fix. Ladies, men are not mind readers. He is not going to know what is wrong unless you tell him. Do not say everything is alright when your tone is cold, and your body language screams that you are angry. He is either going to assume you want to be left alone which may make you feel like he does not care, or he is going to pester you to try and find out what is wrong when you do not want to talk about it. Stop using “fine.” Instead say that your sister hurt your feelings, and you do not want to talk about it. If it was something your man did, simply tell him that you are angry that he left all the cabinet doors open in the kitchen after you told him not to, and you twisted your ankle tripping over them. Stop expecting him to read your mind.
Running late or making him late.
Men and women alike recognize that women need more time to get ready before going anywhere. Women tend to be more clothes conscious, have to choose their accessories and make sure their purse and shoes go together. They have more hair to fix than men and have makeup that they need to do. This takes a lot longer than picking out a nice shirt to go with khaki pants and running a brush through short hair. That said, women know going into things that they need more time to get ready. They have known that for years. So why, men ask, do women always seem to underestimate how much time they need to get ready? It drives men crazy when women are consistently running late, and it is even worse if you nagged him to start getting ready and then need an extra 15 minutes to finish doing your makeup. Either start earlier or try out some lateness avoidance tricks to make sure you and your man are on time.
Making plans without his input.
In most households, women end up being the ones who keep track of things. They know which drawer holds the wine opener and which cabinet the rice cooker is stored in when it is not in use. They know whether or not there is cheese in the fridge and how long that chicken curry has been hiding in the back. They know where the dinner party is this weekend and the name of the boss’s husband as well as her kids. They are also usually the keepers of the schedule. Keeping the schedule, however, also includes adding things to it, and women can get so used to being in charge of knowing when everything is happening that they do not think twice about making plans without their man’s input. While this is not a problem if it only affects you or the kids, do not agree to double date unless you know he is available. No one wants to look up and find that they have been volunteered for something an hour before they need to leave.
Everyone is different. As such, it is almost inevitable that you will have some sort of habit that rubs your man the wrong way. It might be something that you never even realized bothered people, such as leaving the bathroom when you are brushing your teeth or the sound of a hairbrush tugging through tangled hair. There may be little you can do about the habit itself, and you and your man will simply have to find a way to compromise or deal with it. That said, there are some things that are all but guaranteed to drive him crazy, and if you can train yourself out of those early, your relationship is likely to be a lot smoother.
