Fools rush in? The modern relationship trends

Alright, let’s rewind to only a few years ago when you would meet a person at a football game or a spring concert or through a friend’s friend. You two would hit it off and text or call back and forth. You would go to the mall, park or you would go to the movies. You two would meet each other’s parents and siblings, take road trips, go out together, and most importantly, this person would be your significant other or partner.

This last part is pretty unheard of these days, but so is the rest of this scenario. So what has happened between the last years of high school and now? Now we have “friends with benefits” or “really great friends that I go out with every day” or my personal favorite “best friends who act like they are dating because they are and they are not seeing anyone but each other but we cannot be called together because that would make things too easy and take all the pressure off.”

To make matters worse, we have the worst role models rather examples to look up to; modern celebrities!

The sight of Nick Jonas and his new fiancée, Bollywood star Priyanka Chopra, looking doe-eyed at each other after officially announcing their engagement in Mumbai on Saturday is enough to melt the hardest of hearts.

The pair were hot on the heels of Ariana Grande and Pete Davidson, and Justin Bieber and Hailey Baldwin, both of whom got engaged within just one month of a dating.

Other high-profile couples include one-again off-again Caroline Flack and Andrew Brady (three months), and Roxanne Pallett and Lee Walton (one week). This list goes on and on.

So what is the main triggering factor these trends? Because today we very much live in a culture of instant gratification where people, and millennials in particular, want everything immediately. And their wants and needs are quite met literally.

The rise of dating apps, online sites and the swipe right phenomenon has given way to a far more disposable attitude within society, with people moving swiftly from one relationship to the next, and often at great ease.

Undoubtedly social media plays a massive role. Before the digital age, relationships used to be relatively private affairs, but now they are on public display for the world to see and comment on -and the grander the gesture, whether it is PDA’s or gifts, the better.

when people are dating and they don't post or comment anything about their relationships, it's generally assumed that they are having problems or even broke up.

Celebrities live in a different reality, with their own norms and ideals - where everything in their lives happens at a much faster pace than the rest of society. This is why 'normal' people shouldn't try to imitate or compare their love connection with famous people.

I believe it's paramount to take time to know the other person well before you think of engagement and marriage. It's understood to take approximately 2 years for people to get to know the ins and outs of each other hence will have a higher chance of a stable and long term marriage in the end.

Make sure your core goals and beliefs are in tune. It’s easy to get side-tracked into a spontaneous whirlwind romance but before getting hitched, ask the difficult questions and fully explore if you both want the same things in life.

Just because there is a ring on the finger, it doesn’t make your marriage a lifelong deal, so be sure to be fully invested and enjoy the ride!

What are your thoughts on this topic?