My One-on-One with Andrea Syrtash, Dating and Relationship Expert
Earlier this month, at the pre-Valentine’s Day Robin Thicke event in NYC, I met the gorgeous dating expert Andrea Syrtash, who was there on behalf of 1-800 Flowers, to answer our relationship questions. I had quite a few questions for her…
Andrea Syrtash
Termeh Mazhari: What is the number one complaint you hear from women, and men, respectively?
Andrea Syrtash: #1 complaint from women is that many men have lost good ol’ chivalry (I know we send mixed messages, but most women say they would like a guy to offer to pick up the tab on the first date, and should make sure she gets home okay (not just say bye at the subway) etc) and men tend to complain that women can be uptight or critical (or on the opposite side of the spectrum, men complain that women act too needy).
Termeh Mazhari: Do you think men are from Mars and women are from Venus?
Andrea Syrtash: I think men and women are different, yes, but at the end of the day most of us want the same things – to feel seen for who we are, heard, respected, stimulated.
Termeh Mazhari: Do you see any new trends in how couples are celebrating V-Day?
Andrea Syrtash: I think this year people will be a lot more creative with Valentine’s Day…the cold winter and financial stress that a lot of people across the country are experiencing will probably result in more couples hibernating next month and finding more fun ways to celebrate than the standard prix-fix Valentine’s evening dinner and expensive gift exchanges. A thoughtful gesture – or well planned out experience to share with your date – often goes farther than fancy gifts, anyway…
Termeh Mazhari: What if one person in the relationship doesn’t care about V-Day, and the other does?
Andrea Syrtash: I think relationships are about compromise and communication. Expectations need to be managed and both people should feel their needs are being met. The person who cares more about Valentine’s Day should express that fact – that even though she/he understands it’s not important to her/his partner, she/he would appreciate finding a way to honor the holiday together without going overboard. When you’re comfortable in a relationship, it shouldn’t be an issue to explain your point of view and consider the other’s perspective…and to try to arrive at a happy medium.
To find out more about dating and relationship expert Andrea Syrtash, visit www.AndreaSyrtash.com
This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 27th, 2009 at 11:13 am and is filed under Interview. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
