What Does a Strong Relationship Look Like?
Managing relationships, especially romantic ones, is probably the most challenging aspect of everyday life. While it’s all fun and games during the courting stage, once you’re in the middle of ‘we are in a relationship,’ things can become pretty tricky.
While it’s not realistic to think that things will be rosy and positive all the time, the relationship should be broadly positive for all involved. One way to keep things on the right track is to have a solid understanding of the traits and characteristics of a strong relationship.
In this post, we’ll take a closer look at what they are — if your relationship ticks all of these boxes, then you’re probably onto a winner!
You Can Grow as an Individual
It can be easy to lose yourself in a relationship, especially during the early days when you’re in the process of falling in love. But actually, this approach can do more harm than good. The best relationships are ones that have a solid, core foundation, but also in which both parties feel like an individual. You should feel free to be exactly who you are around your partner and also feel the freedom to grow in ways that do not involve your partner too. If they’re a keeper, they’ll want you to flourish.
You Can Work on Issues
There’s no such thing as a perfect relationship. If anyone tells you they have one, they’re lying. The best relationships aren’t naked by an absence of issues; rather, they’re marked by how well they’re able to work on and move past those issues. Take a look at the best couples you know, and in all likelihood, they’ve worked to reach that level in some way, be it undertaking couples counseling, LGBTQ couples therapy, or even individual therapy that improves how one or more of the partners handles conflict. Ultimately, it takes work to have a great relationship, and doing the work shows that both people are fully committed.
Shared Interests
They say opposites attract, but that’s not really true. In all likelihood, you’ll have many similarities with your partner. You might not always agree on everything — for instance, one of you likes drama movies, the other likes superhero movies — but there will be more similarities than differences. If you both like living in the city, going to cultural events and enjoying great food, then you’ll have a lot of material to work with!
Meeting in the Middle
You can always get what you want, but not if you’re in a relationship. If you want to always do things your way, then you’ll be better off single. Relationships are about compromise, be it deciding how you’ll spend your vacation time, what you’ll make for dinner, and many other matters. If you really care about the person, then it won’t be a chore for you to relinquish some control and do what they want from time to time. In fact, the opposite will be true — you’ll be more than happy to do so since you like seeing them happy.
