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If I’ve learned anything about sharing good news with others it’s this: people rarely respond the way you want them to. And that helped me develop my policies regarding sharing good news—policies like “Don’t tell others until I’m done celebrating,” “Never tell this specific list of people—they rain on my parade,” and “Preface the news with I just want to share this with you right now and don’t have time to talk about much else today.” In other words, I don’t leave an opening for someone to make the conversation about my good news, all about themselves. I learned that last one from a dear friend who, when she called to tell me about her engagement, pretty much said that to me. And I’m glad she did because, I was going to tell her all about the breakup I was going through. But you know what? That was her big day. It wasn’t my pity party day. Sometimes people just don’t give you what you want. Here are surprising ways people respond to your engagement.
I thought I’d be first
It can be very hard on some friends or family members who always assumed they’d get engaged before you. Maybe they’ve been with their partner longer or, even if they’re single, they see themselves as more grownup than you. Your engagement can mean their failure to them.
