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Standards beyond relationships: Mwalimu Rachel challenges women to raise their expectations
27th August, 2026 10:18 AM
Media personality Mwalimu Rachel has challenged women to rethink what it means to have standards, arguing that personal expectations should extend beyond dating and relationships.
Speaking on Thursday, August 27, 2026, Rachel questioned why conversations around ‘standards’ often focus almost entirely on romantic relationships, particularly the kind of man a woman wants to date and how she expects to be treated by a partner.
Standards should go beyond dating
According to Rachel, having standards should not only be about deciding what someone wants from a romantic partner.
“Whenever the word ‘standards’ comes up in conversation, our mind immediately goes to, ‘Oh, she’s about to tell us where she’s been taken out on a date, what kind of man she wants to be with,’” she said.
Rachel instead encouraged women to ask themselves whether they have established standards for other areas of their lives.
“But now, have you set standards for yourself as a girlie?” she asked.
Her comments shift the conversation from what women expect from others to what they expect from the services, experiences and situations they personally encounter.
Do not settle for poor service
Rachel used salon services to illustrate her point, saying she would not accept work that falls below the standard she had set.
“If I’m going to go to a salon and that hair is not done the way I had set it, it’s supposed to be done, no,” she explained.
Rather than accepting unsatisfactory work, she said she would prefer to leave and find another place.
For Rachel, this is also part of having standards: knowing when something does not meet your expectations and being willing to walk away.
The media personality further argued that standards should apply across different parts of life, not only in relationships.
Applying to everyday life
“Standards are not accepting bad service from service providers,” she said, challenging the idea that having high expectations should only matter when choosing a partner.
She also questioned the inconsistency of people who maintain strict expectations in dating but may tolerate poor treatment or experiences elsewhere.
“Where is the other who sets standards only when it comes to dating? And when it comes to the other parts of your world, you don’t have any standards?” Rachel asked.
Her remarks offer a broader definition of standards, one centred on self-respect, personal expectations and refusing to accept situations that fall below what one considers acceptable.
