Have you ever sat down and thought about people you used to be close to and no longer speak to? Whether it be friends, family, past relationships, etc.
As humans, we build connections with people we spend the most time around.
What I find interesting is that we tend to build different connections with everyone that is a part of our lives.
Think about it, every single one of your closest friends is a friend of yours for a different reason - maybe you went to high school with one or two, maybe you met another one at the gym, or maybe another moving to a completely different state...
What I find cool about having relationships and making connections with people is having a different relationship with each one of the people you are close to.
We meet people at different stages of our lives, especially during our largest growing stages and develop these connections with them based off of where we are at in our lives at that time.
When I think about the few people I am close to, our relationships to this day are exactly the same as they always have been - even with friends that I have had for over 20 years, we still act like children when we are around each other.
The pivotal shifts of growth in your life attract the kinds of people you need.
Even if the person you attract is a complete piece of shit, you needed to attract that person to learn something from.
What I have found is that the people that stick around, never judge you, and always want to see you win are the people that are meant to be a part of your life forever.
The truth is, not everyone is going to want to see you win.
Not everyone is going to be able to understand you for being the real you and that's okay because the only thing that matters is trying to become the best version of yourself that you can possibly become.
People that don't understand your life path or accept you for being you simply aren't worth your time.
This brings me to my next point about building connections with someone romantically.
When it comes to a man wanting to build a connection with a woman, I believe the most important thing is genuine authenticity.
Being as that I am a man, I can personally attest to the fact that real men crave authenticity from women.
A real man wants a woman that they can both be them full selves around.
A man accepts his woman at her most vulnerable because that is when she is most authentic.
When a woman is truly authentic, there is nowhere for her to hide and this is either what is going to make a man want to do everything in the world to protect her or going to make a man want nothing to do with her.
This concept is relatively simple: in a world where everyone is trying to be like everyone else, a real man wants the girl that every man wants but no other man can have.
A man wants the girl that is herself, doesn't try to fit in with the societal norms, and can just focus on building a life together.
It is easy for a woman to get rejected by a man and immediately become insecure and closed off from wanting to open up to another man. While it is understandable, it can also become problematic for a woman attracting a man that genuinely just wants her to be her.
True genuine connections are built on authenticity - two people who are just themselves, sharing laughs, having deep conversations with one another, etc.
Real men crave the authenticity from a woman the same way a real woman is going to crave that same authenticity from a man.
Things like looks, attention, and money attract emotionally unstable women.
A man that is confident, driven, charismatic, and has the ability to make people laugh is a man that women genuinely want because these qualities are what build genuine connections.
Authenticity attracts genuine people, while materialism attracts emotionally unstable people.
People that are authentic understand the true value of just having the right people around, instead of chasing a fake lifestyle.
People that are authentic value relationships and being able to provide real value to those around them.
Part of the reason why I personally keep such a small circle of people is because of me being who I am.
Not everyone truly understands me, even though from the outside it may seem like the complete opposite.
I can sit here and write words onto a page explaining how I live my life but that doesn't mean someone will truly understand it until they have been around it.
I have always been myself and I very much intend to keep it that way. The people I keep around me understand this about me and they will always be their true selves when we are together.
Also, there is a very good reason as to why I connect so deeply with animals.
A human connection to another living creature that isn't a human is one of the purest bonds that a human could ever experience. There is no ego getting in the way - there is only the purest form of love, trust, loyalty, and respect.
True authenticity has been what has built some of the strongest connections I have had with people in my life.
I have found that me not wanting to fit in with the masses has worked to my advantage in terms of keeping the right people in my life and walking away from the wrong ones.
I value every single connection that I build with someone because I know the direction my life is going and people who genuinely want to be a part of it are the ones that will be with me until the end.
The deepest connections are built when two people who value genuine substance meet and can be their truest selves with one another.