THEY say the best laid plans often go awry, meaning that no matter how well or carefully you plan something, something may still go wrong with it. But also, nothing beats a trial but a failure — nothing ventured, nothing gained — and a woman bent on getting what she wants, is a force to be reckoned with.

Women are great masterminds, and sometimes when things happen in relationships, it’s not fate or destiny, it’s actually the result of a woman scheming. And as these women share, getting a man to bend to their will by masterminding a clever plan, was easy peasy.

Sharlene, 30:

I was dating my now hubby for a few years and we were OK, but he was making no move to get engaged or anything, and I already was a single mother to one child, so I wanted a ring and to be a wife. One day we had an argument and I told him to leave me alone and I was ending things as he wasn’t serious. I messaged him later that day and told him I was pregnant, and wouldn’t keep the baby since he wasn’t serious about me. I wasn’t pregnant, I just wanted to see his reaction. He was very happy and immediately proposed. I spent the next weeks both planning a wedding, and trying to actually get pregnant. Luckily I was successful. To make a long story short, we’re now happily married with an expanding family.

Natacia, 26:

Me, him and his girlfriend all worked in the same company. I was her supervisor and he was giving me eyes, so it’s not like I intentionally set out to mess their thing up. He was flirting with me all the time, and I liked him too, but she was in the way. So I wrote her up several times and eventually she got frustrated and resigned. I only dated him for a few months though, until I realised that he was very immature and not really my type at all. We still work together and I’m in a relationship with someone else, but I still look at the girl’s social media to check on her sometimes, to make sure she’s OK.

Angell, 38:

I got my father to promote him to prevent him from leaving to go to another company in another parish, because I was still working my way into his life. My dad understood the assignment, and he was offered a promotion and increase. Before, I was subtle in trying to get him to notice me, but after that I got bolder, and eventually he asked me out.

Shania, 32:

Four years into my marriage things were really bad, and I would see my husband was losing interest, and to be honest, I was a little bored too. However, I didn’t want to divorce. We would have arguments and make up, but things were pretty bad communication-wise. Anyway, I noticed that it seemed that he was losing interest in me — my appearance overall and even getting intimate — and so I invented this man, started talking on the phone, started going out alone, and basically started faking that I was cheating, and hubby fell for it. He got really, really upset and devastated and suggested we go to counselling as he couldn’t bear to lose his family. Little did he know that my side man was a fake.