When it comes to making your marriage successful, what works for your neighbor may not work for you. But the following rules are good guidelines for successful relationships. Whether you are in your first year or your tenth or your twentieth year of marriage, these are the tools that can help you rekindle trust, commitment and success into your daily married life.
- Great sex is not about sexual skill, but about emotional intimacy and the ability to share the deepest parts of yourself with trust with your partner
- Your childhood affects your marriage because your childhood affects how you can enjoy a multitude of things, understanding your past and how you handle love can help you understand your present and your future – don’t be afraid to discuss your past openly with each other
- Marriage changes and evolves – there are lots of different stages – just as with enjoying your children grow, enjoy the different stages of your marriage
- Codependence is not always a negative, you and your spouse need to need each other – just wanting to be there isn’t always enough and needing each other is a vital ingredient to a marriage
- Your marriage comes before your job, your family and even your kids – I know Moms, this can be easier said than done, but you need to make sure you put your husband up there and your marriage up there in rankings and don’t keep demoting it because life gets packed – your kids will appreciate the healthy relationship between their parents
- Avoid emotional infidelity – if you are constantly reaching outside the marriage for emotional support – this is a sign that something is wrong
- The in-laws and extended family are important to a marriage, but they should neither disrupt it nor define it
- Defining your roles can help keep you both on target, revisiting daily, weekly and monthly your goals, needs and roles can help you both to stay connected
- Appreciation should define your acceptance in marriage, not just settling
- A marriage, like an individual, needs goals and a plan to achieve them – don’t let yours wander aimlessly
What rules do you utilize in your own marriage success?