Understanding What Men Really Want

Although the world continues to change at lightning speed and many of the old rules seem to go out the window on a near daily basis, there are still a great many things that have not changed and likely will never be any different than the way they have always been. For one thing, knowing what men want, as a rule, can be a somewhat complex matter but, in the end, understanding what drives men is the key to knowing how to navigate in what is, according to most people, still a man's world. To get a grip on this subject the best thing to do is go back to the beginning and look at what men have historically done and, more importantly, why they did it.

In The Beginning

There's little argument that men and women have some basic design differences. The main one being overall physical strength which allows men, in general, to simply overpower women and take what they want assuming there is no system in place such as a protector of some sort like a bodyguard, an army or a government with laws that make a would be attacker think twice about using brute physical strength to get what he wants.

Still, it is this brute strength that was the driving force in men largely taking control of nearly everything from materials to land to power over entire populations. And, even though there have been women rulers, they were largely able to remain in place as a matter of politics where enough powerful men decided it was in their best interests to support the female ruler.

Another major point here is that men, whether rightly or wrongly, whether through sheer desire and motivation or through an often unfair degree of opportunity, tend to be more driven to create systems and mechanisms which allow them to be the driving force behind the kind of innovation that gives them power over others.

The end result of all of this is that men have largely been responsible for the foundations on which civilizations have been built since the dawn of history. And, even though women have played a large role in that, and should be seen as indispensable in the process, their contributions have been much more in the background. Hence, the old saying of "Behind every great man there is a woman."

Power Sharing

Even though men have had a dominant role in the way that the world has been structured from the beginning there can be no doubt that the roles of men and women have been in constant flux as cultural norms continue to change and advance to the point where women are taking on leadership roles in society, government, the business world and elsewhere. And, this change in many parts of the developed world has caused a lot of men to question and, in many cases, attempt to rebel against these changing norms.

This can best be illustrated by looking at the ongoing battle between the forces of conservatism and liberalism in many parts of the world and in many sectors of society. And, this is largely due to the belief that many men have that they are the naturally dominant gender.

Keeping that in mind it is easy to see how many men view their place in the world and what they want out of life.

The Battle Of The Sexes

Looking at the history of humanity it is clear that men, in general,  have a natural desire to dominate everything around them. From conquering nature by building ever more advanced shelters and weapons to dominating their weaker male opponents through threats, intimidation and force to subjugating women to supporting rolls, men have always sought the power to make the decisions which affect theme and those around them. But, with the ever increasing amount of laws and legislation in many advanced countries, the ability of men to  just take what they want and do as they will, is becoming more and more a thing of the past.

The big question in all of this is how have men been able to adapt to these many changes and what effect has it had on their relationships with women in both their public interactions and their private lives.

The New World

In a world where the absolute dominance of men has diminished greatly many males are feeling that they are under attack and that the very essence of who they are is rapidly being stripped away. This has led to a great deal of frustration among many guys who, in the past, felt that they were superior in many ways to nearly any woman just because of the fact that they were a man. But, now a woman who may have a higher educational standing has become a serious threat to men as they find that their expectation of male privilege is not helping them keep the jobs or other positions that were always theirs no matter what qualifications that a woman had.

In this world many men are having to come to grips with a changing power structure which often leaves them on the outside looking in as more and more women with superior skills and education take over positions of power that were almost always reserved for men. This fact has caused a number of issues between the sexes that are still working themselves out and likely  will continue to do so for a long time to come.

The New Power Dynamic

The big question for most men in this brave new world is how can they continue to see themselves as dominant males in a world where that power and the very right to assert themselves as they always have is slipping through their fingers. In many cases, and in men with the intellect to assess the situation fully, the answer is that they see it as a game of strategy where they must adapt to a game in which the rules may be changing but in which they still have many of the advantages.

For example, even though the statistics around the number of men and women who are seeking and attaining higher degrees in education are changing to the point where the majority of college graduates are now women, more strategic thinking men still understand that their natural gifts as men which provide them with the perception of dominance can be a great advantage when it comes to acquiring the status, wealth and power that so many others are striving for. So, even in a game with shifting rules a man who exhibits all the classic traits of manhood can and is quite likely to continue to succeed in his goals of achieving dominance over his weaker or less bold males as well as much of his female competition.

What About Love?

Despite the changing power dynamics in the roles that men and women play in today's modern society there are many things in the relationships between the sexes that remain constant. And, even though there are some things that both sexes have to adjust when it comes to changing societal expectations and the roles that they are expected to play in the world, men and women are still and will always be men and women. This simply means that many men will always feel like they need to assume many of the traditional roles that have always been set out for them and many women will always want their men to feel that way and assume those roles.

In the end, there are some things that are just part of the essence of who we are, whether we are a guy or a girl, and nothing is ever really going to change that. Still, every man needs to feel that he is fulfilling his role even if some of the parameters of what that means shift depending on the times and the world in which they are living. So, if you are a woman who is trying to figure out how to deal with a man who feels like he is struggling to know who he is, just remember that every guy wants to be like the men who came before him or at least feel like he could be.