Are you masculine or feminine at your core?
Take assessmentIn 2009, a programmer by the name of Kevin Systrom began working on a passion project that married his interests in photography and social sharing. He called the idea Burbn — a mobile app that allowed users to check in at particular locations, make plans for future check-ins, earn points for hanging out with friends, and post pictures of the meetups.
Burbn, however, was not exactly a hit with the users. The app was just too complicated. But Systrom was undaunted. He brought on another programmer, Mike Krieger, and together, the pair determined that while users were not utilizing Burbn’s check-in features, they were using the app’s photo-sharing features. And after months of tweaking and experimenting, Systrom and Krieger released a pared down version of Burbn that was essentially a simple photo-sharing app. They called it Instagram.
You see, Kevin and Mike had a decision to make. Sure, they could have forged on with Burbn the way it was, neglecting to make any significant changes. But odds are, they would have failed. They also could have thrown in the towel and chosen to move on to another project and another idea altogether. But it was the decision they made to honor their commitment to the project and be flexible enough to use the information they had to find an innovative and productive solution that allowed them to prevail.
It’s the same in relationships.
A lot of us have been conditioned to think that once we find the person who we believe is perfect for us, then the hard work is over. Everything should be smooth sailing from that point on. After all, if they are perfect for us, shouldn’t everything just fall into place? But that couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, once you find the partner you are ready to commit to, that’s when the real work begins. And any healthy relationship will require a certain amount of flexibility from each partner. Because change is inevitable. And in order for a relationship to grow and prosper, it is critical that you and your partner be able to adapt to the changes, finding your way through the good and the bad together.
