Anytime a woman competes with another woman she demeans herself.
Expressing yourself when he takes for granted doesn't work.
When you live life with him or without him, that is when he will accept and value you for who you are.
You can tell how much someone respects you by how much he respects your opinion. If he doesn't respect your opinion, he won't respect you.
You can get away with saying much more with humor than you can with a straight face.
He must feel that you choose to be with him, not that you need to be with him.