You may have heard of the best-selling book 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. But do you have any clue what are the 7 habits of highly effective relationships? What are the habits that happy couples practice in their relationships to make their bonding strong?
If you have wondered about this often then the first thing we would tell you is happy relationships don’t just exist, they’re built. It is the truth. It takes a lot of consistent work to make a relationship work, let alone turn into a happy place for both partners.
Couples in happy relationships have a tendency to make it seem as though the whole relationship is maintained effortlessly, but in reality, it took them a while to figure things out or be at a place where they know what they are doing.
There is no shortcut to happiness in a relationship. To foster it, you must take the longest road and discover things as you travel along the way. Healthy relationship habits have to be cultivated over time.
A sense of responsibility and accountability always helps to garner a healthy relationship between two functional people. To be able to stay mentally healthy with each other’s support means that you care enough. Relationships are almost like baking cakes; it is just very stressful, but in the end, it’s worth the effort.
Author of the best-selling book Mindful Relationship Habits: 25 Practices for Couples to Enhance Intimacy, Nurture Closeness, and Grow a Deeper Connection, Barrie Davenport writes in her blog, “All of us have challenges and difficulties we face. We have goals and dreams we want to accomplish. As a life-long truth seeker, I’m always looking for the best ways to manage challenges, minimize suffering, and find joy and fulfillment in life.”
This is the essence of the 7 habits of highly effective relationships. This attitude makes all the difference and becomes the guiding light for the things that couples do in a happy relationship.
7 Habits of Highly Effective Relationships
Table of Contents
The 7 habits of highly effective relationships comprise small but thoughtful gestures, and above all, the conviction to follow through, come hell or high water. For instance, Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas say they have made it a rule that they do not carry their smartphones to the bedroom.
Hollywood actress Meryl Streep, who has been married to Don Gummer for 39 years, always says the secret to their long, happy marriage is they have always ensured they listen to each other and stay away from communication problems in their relationship.
There are some habits of couples in strong and healthy relationships that make them tick. What are the others, you ask? Let’s take you through a detailed lowdown on 7 habits of highly effective relationships:
1. They are transparent with one another
Transparency is one of the 7 habits of highly effective relationships that helps you two grow as human beings. When two people are in a relationship, a lot of things are at stake. Be it your vulnerability or your lack of responsibility, everything is bound to surface as you stay together and get to know each other inside out.
But that is healthy since it obliterates any secrets between you and your partner. Couples who are in a healthy relationship tend to stay honest. Honesty is very much an agency that helps them keep transparency alive.
Actor Channing Tatum and his wife Jenna Dewan play a game in their relationship. At any point in time, they ask each other how much love they feel on a scale of 1 to 10 and they expect their partner to give an honest answer.
2. You make compromises, not sacrifices
Compromises help you reciprocate small gestures, which are so important in a relationship. These compromises help couples establish trust and strengthen their connection. Compromises may range from reading or watching something you aren’t fond of or can be something as serious as moving home for a partner’s career growth.
However, there is a difference between compromise and sacrifice in a relationship. But couples in happy healthy relationships make small compromises, rather adjustments so that their relationship continues to be strong but without sacrificing on individual values that drive them.
Related Reading: 12 Things You Should Never Compromise On In A Relationship
3. Frank discussion about finances
Most relationships falter when it comes to finances but not the healthy ones. One of the 7 habits of highly effective relationships is that both partners have the ability to talk about finances frankly and honestly and in a way that establishes equal partnership in everything.
Love is infinite but resources/capital aren’t, and that’s why financial planning is so crucial to the success of any relationship. What sets couples in happy and healthy relationships apart and enables them to grow rich together is that they recognize this fact all too well.
Happy couples are always in the know about each other’s finances and they can handle their financial ups and downs far better. So there is less financial stress in the relationship.
4. A little PDA
PDA is wonderful as long as you don’t try to rub it in everyone’s face. Do what you have to and care less for the world. If you love your partner, there’s no harm in a little PDA. Surely, one of the healthy relationship habits is to indulge in a bit of PDA, but at the same time, also knowing how much PDA is too much.
It’s wonderful to be holding hands while on a walk and happy couples make the most of it. They can also share a quick kiss while sitting in the park but you won’t find them making out in full public view. Among the 7 habits of highly effective relationships is a knack for keeping their displays of affection tasteful.
Related reading: How to have a happy marriage when you are an emotionally distant person?
5. Happy couples are upfront
“I don’t like this thing that you do” is the kind of attitude that can make couples fight less. Being honest and calling out each other’s bullshit can be very healthy for any relationship. It doesn’t mean that you are less empathetic toward your partner, but it makes a point where you realize that no one’s perfect.
Don’t let the small things fester into something dreadful, be upfront and this is a formula for a healthy relationship.
Pierce Brosnan who is married to Keely Shaye Smith says their happiness stems from the fact that they have been upfront and they have never tried to change each other.
6. Go on dates
Doesn’t matter where you do it but taking some time out to go out and having a nice dinner can go a long way in keeping you connected and in love. What you do on these dates doesn’t count, but the time spent together does.
One of the 7 habits of highly effective relationships is that they prioritize spending quality time with each other and never skimp on their date night. When they go out, they make it a point to have healthy conversations rather than discussing the same-old mundane things like work and domestic responsibilities.
Every little snippet of your respective lives matters and talking about it helps you make memories. These little things do help and they matter. Couples’ date nights as parents can work wonders in sustaining a happy, healthy relationship dynamic.
7. Paying compliments
It is more like you are flirting, except that you are not being very subtle. Paying compliments helps in keeping positivity flowing through any relationship. These compliments act as validation, which often elevates the chances of having a healthy and tangible relationship.
You should just go ahead and compliment your husband or your wife and see how happy it makes them. It could be about a random act of kindness or them looking sharp in an outfit, if there is something you appreciate about your significant other, compliment them for it, and see where it takes you. Help the butterflies in your stomach bloom out of the cocoon, set them free.
The 7 habits of highly effective relationships include being more compassionate, empathetic, sensible, responsible, and most importantly, being a kind person. Relationships are not tokens or medals but like flowers that bloom only when they’re nurtured.
FAQs
The signs of a healthy relationship are wonderful communication, trust, compassion, appreciation for each other and being financially honest to each other.
At the risk of repeating ourselves we would say the five most important things in a relationship are love, conviction to make it work, transparency, fidelity and trust.
In the age of social media when fake relationships are projected as the real ones it’s hard to tell if a couple is really happy. But you would know a couple is happy if they spend time with each other, going out for movies and dates.
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Being in a relationship with someone can be a complex and rocky road, but when you’re happy, it’s the best thing in the world.
Happiness lies in the small things!
I was giving mental high-fives all along. Because, I can connect to all of them. That’s how you carry on a bond breathing with spontaneity and love. It’s these small yet significant things like going on dinner dates, being franj about the finances , sharing responsibilities.. Yes, it’s the little things. That matters the most.