by Charles Simmins

Created on: February 18, 2009   Last Updated: May 27, 2009

Why would a young woman want to date an older man? There are some benefits to a May / December relationship.

As a teen or twenty something, women will often want more of an emotional connection that men their own age can provide. Dating a man a few years older often connects women to men who have grown into their emotions and their ability to express themselves comfortably. An older man may understand you.

Men need time to learn to listen well. A woman who has been working for a number of years wants a man who will listen to her, as consider her ideas and thoughts. In order to be seen as an equal, a more mature older man may be able to provide that validation. An older man is more likely to treat you an an intellectual equal.

If a woman has a family in her plans for the future, she should be picking her dates on that basis. Older men have careers, and a path in life that brings them a stability that is valuable to a family. A younger go-getter, jumping from job to job every two years, may not be a man to begin a family with. In order to settle down, the man you date must have settled down.

One of the benefits of the women's liberation movement and the sexual revolution has been that women have learned to appreciate their own intimacy needs and to know that their bodies do not respond as do mens. Dating an older man allows a women to find a lover with more experience and a greater sense of how a man and a woman achieve real intimacy together.

From a very practical perspective, an older man may have more money. Women who appreciate the finer things in life often find that to be one of the benefits of dating older men. A meal at McDonald's can be very romantic but a meal on a cruise in the Greek islands can be just as romantic. If diamonds are a girl's best friend, an older man might be a real jewel.

Not all older men have learned anything from life. Some will never be able to connect emotionally. Some have never learned to listen. A few older men would make lousy fathers. Women will also discover that maturity may not make a man good in bed.

That said, a woman should be open to the benefits of dating older men. They will be different than men in your own age group. They will respond to you differently. They will treat you differently. They can offer a woman a wealth of experience and a lifetime of lessons learned that will be a complete change from what your usual date is like.

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