Maintaining a healthy relationship with a partner over the long term is typically not an easy task. This requires work from both partners and a willingness to commit to one another to ensure mutual happiness. Should you be experiencing a certain amount of turmoil in your dating life, worry not. There are plenty of ways to strengthen your relationship regardless of how stable it is.
Making simple daily attitude changes can breathe new energy into anyone’s love life. Life is all about effort, and your relationship should be no exception. With a little effort, anyone’s relationship can be on the fast track to being as healthy and wonderful as ever.
- Value Yourself – The foundation of every relationship should be built upon two people valuing themselves, then dedicating their time to building a life together. One-sided relationships are bound to be riddled with problems. Love is a two-way street, and a strong relationship cannot be developed until both partners love themselves first. This isn’t natural for many people. It often takes working with a coach or therapist to help resolve old wounds or stories that get in the way of valuing ourselves.
- Be Thankful – Being mindful of the good things in life takes effort as well. It can be easy for people to focus solely on the negative aspects of life, forgetting what is truly most important. By fine-tuning the mind a little bit each day, a person can learn to more clearly see the greater things about their relationship and their partner.
- Feel Deserved – When it comes to maintaining a healthy relationship, both parties involved need to feel that they deserve each other. Are you able to feel on a deep level that your partner and you are both deserving of love? The moment one person in the relationship starts to feel undeserving, insecurities will flood in and potentially ruin the relationship as a whole. Each partner should feel deserving of the love they receive. Conversely, if one partner feels the other is undeserving, that creates another imbalance based on the illusion of superiority. Healthy partners have neither an inflated or deflated idea about their deservedness. They feel equally matched, even though they understand the relationship will go through natural ups and downs.
- Feel Beautiful – Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. No one should ever feel as though their partner does not find them to be beautiful both inside and out. When it comes to relationships, feeling attractive to the other person is very important, as it gives both parties involved a sense of self-worth and being wanted. Relationships remain healthy when proper self-esteem is maintained. That can be a challenge in a world that pushes a narrative about what is and is not attractive – physically, financially, spiritually, sexually, etc. Even those who seem to have that “it” factor can get caught up in seeking an unattainable perfection through surgeries, spiritual gurus, exercise and work addictions, and certainly sexual additions. But no amount of external affirmation will create a lasting sense of your own beauty and wonder. Feeling beautiful is an inside job.
- True Partnership – Strong couples should feel as though they are with their true partners. While finding your “perfect soulmate” seems like quite a tall order, any two people can make a strong, loving couple together, especially if they have a growth mindset. A true partner is someone who is willing to do the work of actually being themselves and allowing their partner to do the same. It takes courage to be vulnerable enough to show your true self to another, but no partnership can reach its full potential unless the partners have the chance to love and be loved for who they truly are.
To learn more about Tj Bartel and how he helps men and couples create more harmonious, deeply intimate relationships, visit his coaching website.