Anonymous wrote:"They are also important, but in my experience, as a high-earning woman, a huge income differential impacts a relationship.
I'm the PP you're disagreeing with.
How so? I'm genuinely curious? Historically men have typically been the big(ger) earner, often with dramatic income differentials and supposedly that works ok. What is the inherent problem with men being the low-income partner from your perspective? Say, the Art History PhD who gets less than $100k for his work at the Smithsonian.
In my own experience, I made 2x what my ex-wife did - in fact, I still support her somewhat. On the other hand, my new wife makes more than 2x what I do. We do share expenses to some degree, but she definitely carries a little more of the load, given that she's got more to spend.
Anonymous wrote:I don't want someone to support me, but I want someone who can travel as I can and otherwise has a similar lifestyle.
What'sa matter? You can't share or pick up a bit of the tab? You know, that's part of 'liberation'. Or do you insist on going dutch when it's your money?
My wife has a friend - a transplant surgeon - who can never find a guy to date because she is so unwilling to date anyone who makes less....your attitude reminds me of her...as it does of another female friend who is 6'2" and insists on only dating men who are taller than her when she's wearing her heels. Both are wonderful gals but very unhappy and it is of their own making.
I stand by my earlier recommendation: a man is better off without a woman who is interested in just the $$ number - doubly so if she has enough of her own $$ to ensure that she lives a nice lifestyle even without his $$. Figuring out if a guy is financially stable - that is, sensible, responsible, able to take care of himself - is certainly very very important, particularly if you'll ever mingle your finances legally (getting married), but the rest is just a shallow arbitrary number.
For the record: I know at least three couples where the income and education levels are dramatically different - with the woman as the high-income, high-degree partner - which work incredibly well...one of the guys is a SAHD; the other is a former marine who markets craftbrews. Wives are >$500k/yr doctors.