A Broadened Perspective of #RelationshipGoals

“Peep how he spoils me,” reads the caption of an Instagram post. “Baby kiss me before they turn the lights out” discloses the emotionally revealing tweet… I mean lyrics to my favorite song.  Relationship statuses such as “single”, “in a relationship”, “it’s complicated”, “in an open relationship”, or “in a civil union” have been updated and posted on Facebook.

Upon observation, one cannot help but wonder: are these the relationships that truly inspire us? Are these the relationships that challenge us and help us grow as individuals? What comes to mind when you think of “relationship goals”?

Sophomore Danielle Williams emphasizes, “A relationship consists of learning about the other person and making sure that your personalities fit together. Make sure that you guys don’t have opposing values. Say if you’re strong and into your religion but you decide to date an atheist, how is that going to help you grow?” Williams communicates.

“When I think of relationship goals, I think of characteristics that I want in any relationship. Such as good communication skills; I want to openly communicate with my partner,” iterates Maureen Shaw, a junior pre-social work major.

Developing social connections that contribute to healthy relationships are essential. Relationship goals are about establishing healthy relationships with people; whether those relationships happen to be romantic, professional, or social. Healthy connections provide a variety of experiences and opportunities that influence an individual. These connections can influence an individual’s mental and physical health, interpersonal and intrapersonal skills, and other capacities. They also promote individual growth, while encouraging one another to succeed professionally and academically.

Students at Frostburg State University are constantly learning and understanding the true value of developing substantial, healthy, and intimate relationships. On the afternoon of Saturday, Sept. 17, 2016 at 3 p.m., the student organization “Relationship Goals” hosted a cookout at Edgewood Commons. The cookout, which was free and open to the entire university student body “was a way to engage with the students living in Edgewood to build relationships and to promote the message of Relationship Goals,” dominates Jared Turner, Treasurer of Relationship Goals. Student DJ Juice performed, while other students enjoyed a game of volleyball and one another’s company.

Relationship Goals demonstrates the underlying message of their organization. As Troi Newman, Secretary of Relationship Goals portrays, “The main goal of Relationship Goals is to provide students with the tools and opportunities to develop quality professional, social, romantic, platonic, and intimate relationships.” Troi adds, “We would also like to broaden and strengthen relationships on and off-campus by embracing diversity so that students can learn and grow from one another.”

The President of Relationship Goals, Bentley Ukonu concludes, “We do a lot of talking, but Relationship Goals is about action. For my relationship goals for FSU, it is my goal for us as a student body to come together and develop strong relationships with one another. I hope that we can embrace the unique characteristics that make us all different. I want us to learn from these characteristics and to grow from them so that we may join together as one student body.”

Are we allowing tweets, posts on Instagram, statuses on Facebook, and overall social media culture to confine our concept of a healthy relationship? On the other hand, should we gain a fresh perspective as to what a healthy relationship means to us in our daily lives with those around us?

The organization Relationship Goals provides a more inclusive perspective as it relates to building social connections in a broader context. Their vision goes beyond the image portrayed by the media. It is deeper than merely forming superficial romantic relationships, which we tend to “hype” on social media. Instead, Relationship Goals suggests that we strive towards constructing strong, intimate, platonic, and healthy relationships that may be social, professional, romantic, or family-oriented. These are the relationships that one can grow and learn from. Are they on the right track? The next time you update your relationship status on Facebook, pause and consider assessing the quality of your relationships with others, not just your romantic partner.