My parents and particularly my father were instrumental in forming my views on women. This evolved over time and events such as relationship failures tended to harden my sentiments but I essentially always remained determined that things be equal between genders. I’ve never understood why men or women don’t work in some areas but dominate others. I tried looking after a small child for a while and quickly realised I should value people who do that job way more than I actually did, it’s really difficult and thankless. I work in a male dominated industry but some of the most instrumental and impactful colleagues have been women. They are often sidelined and diminished by their experiences in the workplace. Most of the men I work with seem to be utterly tone deaf to this problem and lack self awareness. They have no clue what it means to have privilege and talk like this isn’t a problem. I’m happy about the rise of women and I think it will make the world a better place.

Having been on a dating scene for a few weeks now it seems there is a huge appetite for men that are emotionally available and are able to express how they feel and make themselves vulnerable. This was the lesson that I learnt after the demise of my last relationship. We have to be able to ask for what we want, tell people how we feel and that we care about them. Honest and candid conversations under these premises are ultimately much more fulfilling and lead to genuine connection.