STREET INTERVIEW: Can you marry someone who earns less than you?
This reflective piece explores the writer's first street interview, centered on the question: "Can you marry someone who earns less than you?" It discusses the emotional and cultural weight of the topic, the challenges of selecting participants, and contrasting viewpoints from two women—one prioritizing financial stability, the other valuing love above money. The writer shares personal opinions, technical difficulties faced (like background noise and phone storage issues), and lessons learned from the experience. Ultimately, the project helped the writer overcome personal barriers and gain practical skills in communication and video production. Meta Description: A first-hand account of a street interview exploring if people can marry someone who earns less than them. Includes diverse opinions, technical challenges, personal reflections, and valuable lessons from stepping out of a comfort zone.
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Conducting a street interview can be very exciting but as much as it is exciting, it is very challenging. My recent and first street interview explored the question with can you marry someone who earns less than you? This topic is very personal and it heavily reflects cultural attitudes and diverse opinions making it a fascinating point of discussion.
CHOOSING THE RIGHT PARTICIPANTS
One of my first challenges was deciding on whom to approach. In a busy street setting, not everyone is open to being interviewed. While some feel very sceptical about being posted online, others are in a hurry and even when they stop, they might feel uncomfortable discussing such a personal question.
There was the battle between approaching older people since they are known to be wiser and more vast in knowledge and approaching the younger generation who might answer based on their current situations and influence was quite a struggle for me.
Eventually, I have to access the mood and openness of my potential participants by first discussing and asking them if they would be willing to be interviewed.
THE INTERVIEWS
First participant: Financial stability as a priority.
The first person I spoke with firmly stated in her reply that she cannot marry someone who earns less than her. Her reason for the reply was very practical: the financial demands of the household can be overwhelming and without sufficient income, they might struggle to meet up with financial obligations. She also emphasized the importance of financial stability as security, noting that this imbalance can cause a strain on even the most loving of relationships.
Her response highlighted a common viewpoint which most women will agree with that financial comparability is very crucial for a successful marriage.
Second participant: Love over money
The second person was also a woman, who surprisingly offered a contrasting perspective. She said she can marry someone who earns less than her although not fully captured in the video due to unforeseen circumstances, she stated that true love supersedes financial statuses. She argued that a relationship built on genuine affection and understanding should not be defined by paychecks.
Her response reminded me that for some people, emotional connection and shared dreams outweighs monetary considerations.
My point of view on this fascinating topic:
Personally, I cannot marry someone who earns less than me. I, as a woman, have always wanted someone who will not only inspire me to love God, but will inspire me to grow in all aspects including the financial aspect.
While a lot of people might contradict this, I believe that sometimes marrying someone who earns less than you can breed disrespect and resentment over time making the love and harmony that you both began with to wane and become sour.
Although, contrary to my own opinion, Growth and development is very important and if your partner has the potential and realistic dreams to become someone you will be proud to call yours, then by all means you can certainly marry someone who earns less than you.
CHALLENGES FACED DURING THE INTERVIEW
While these conversations were interesting and insightful, I encountered several obstacles along the way.
Background Noise:
Conducting interviews on a busy street means battling constant background noise. From the passing cars, to chattering pedestrians, these sounds can and did drown out my questions and my participants' responses. This made it difficult to capture clear audio footage.
Phone storage issues:
Another significant challenge I faced was my phone storage. Halfway through the interviews I received the dreadful notification phone storage full forcing me to delete files and some apps to free up space which didn’t seem to do much because it not only broke my focus but I was not able to get the complete footage I needed for this project.
Lessons learnt
Reflecting on my experience so far, I realize that street interviews are more than just capturing different opinions; they require s quick thinking, adaptability and effective communication. I also learnt the importance of being prepared both technically and mentally to ensure my equipment is fully functional including ensuring my phone has adequate storage space and managing background noise as well.
I have also taken it upon myself to explore video editing in order to be more prepared for future projects like this.
In conclusion, this project forced me to step out of my comfort zone being an introvert. It helped me actually approach people, smile and have a few conversations with them before diving into my question.
Overall the experience was an exciting one and I look forward to more.
