How badly do you want to have an awesome relationship with your partner? How committed are you to making the relationship work? Is failure an option? Do you have one foot out the door? I hear partners complain about how they want things to be different, but they don’t take any risks to change things. It makes sense that striving to create the relationship we want is scary, as this would entail Being in the relationship in very specific ways:
Being fully present and available.
Making our partner a priority.
Stretching to meet our partner’s needs.
Being patient, understanding, and compassionate.
Embracing our partner and their world.
Being vulnerable and showing up.
Bringing this way of being with our partner into our relationship takes a huge emotional risk and investment. For what if we are not accepted, wanted, embraced? What if what we give is not good enough? What if we are judged and rejected? What if we are left? What if in giving we lose ourselves? This is scary.
So instead we hide, protect ourselves, and beat on our partner in an effort to make them the partner we want. We make a full commitment to making our partner our ideal partner… We become obsessed with changing them, even if just in the running script in our minds…
The problem is that the obsession holds us back. I’m sure you know by now that you can’t change your partner. When the focus is misplaced this way we force our partner to operate in self-preservation mode, which is usually not pretty… We actually invite the worst of our partner. We end up shooting ourselves in the foot.
We choose this over the risk of operating from the more vulnerable, generous, and altruistic place. An unfortunate choice, as that is actually the gateway to our awesome relationship… Take note for how you invite the worst of your partner, for how you co-create the status quo of your relationship.
Now, don’t misunderstand this. I’m not implying you become a doormat or a punching bag. I’m simply suggesting you put aside the power struggle. You don’t have to have your way just to make a point. You don’t have to punish your partner. You don’t have to parent your partner or teach them a lesson. You don’t have to win or get your way.
You don’t have to be right. Relationships are not about all that. If this is your focus and want to stick with it, I promise you will not be happy nor create the relationship you want. Stop all this silly nonsense. Your digging in your heals in reaction to their reaction is making things worse. Know that you create a non-ending reciprocal pattern when you do this. It’s time to start somewhere and change this. It’s OK to give in, risk, and invest.
Embrace the concept that operating from an altruistic place does not mean or lead to your being cancelled, muted, non-existent, nullified, eliminated… Creating space for your partner to exist and thrive does not take away from who you are, or make you an idiot. It’s OK to be humble, to go with the flow, to Zen-wise detach.
Detach with love and investment. Make positive contributions in your interactions, repair, healing, enrichment, and growth of your relationship: Set appropriate boundaries (watch your delivery). Make responsible requests. Moderate your feelings. Make timely amends. Mindfully share your thoughts. Give generously. Do a lot of Self care.
When you take risks and invest you are empowering your Self and allowing your partner to exist. When your partner’s existence is not threatened, they can bring their best Self to the relationship. And, isn’t that what you wanted in the first place?
Become the ideal partner. Support your partner’s existence. Create safety for your partner to receive you. Invite your partner to be your ideal partner. Take matters into your own hands. Woo your partner in their love language. Go all out. No more hesitation, ambivalence, or holding back. Make a huge investment for a huge return. Go for your awesome relationship today!
Happy Investing!
~ Your MetroRelationship ™Assignment
Figure out how your partner makes you feel the negative feels you had growing up. You might have to go deep to figure out these feelings and the connection. Go easy on yourself, this is difficult stuff. Then share this new found insight with your partner from a non-blaming position asking them to just hear you out.
Finally, give your partner two specific behavior changes they can choose one from to do providing you with a different outcome than the usual and thus healing you. Make sure the choices you give meet your needs.
Copyright (c) 2016 Emma K. Viglucci. All rights reserved.
Want to Use this Article in Your Own Website or Publication?
Be our guest! Here is how, you MUST include: Emma K. Viglucci, LMFT is the Founder and Director of Metropolitan Marriage & Family Therapy, PLLC, a private practice that specializes in working with couples, she is the creator of the MetroRelationship™ philosophy and a variety of Successful Couple™ content that assist couples succeed at their relationship and their life. Stay Connected™ with Emma and receive weekly Connection Notes in your inbox with Personal Growth and Relationship Enrichment insights and strategies, visit: www.metrorelationship.com.
We all have dreams, wishes and goals. There are things we want for ourselves, our partner, our family. Sometimes though we find that it is difficult, if not impossible, to make our wish a reality.
We may want to start a new business, go back to school, learn a new trade, pick up a new hobby or project, throw a party, have the house a certain way, keep fit, enroll in activities with our children, have more intimate and fun moments with our partner, having another child, etc. But life gets in the way and we just dream about these and never see them materialize.
This is an ugly way to go about our days and our life. We are not really living when we barely make it through “reactive” tasks everyday and then the day is over. Some people go through their days just putting out fires and not getting anywhere.
The thing is that in partnership your wishes and dreams can come true. It is difficult enough to motivate ourselves and set ourselves up to achieve success without the added burden of fighting our partner in the process.
When our partner becomes our ally and a team player the energies that would normally go into convincing, cajoling, nagging, and compensating for them could be better put to use into making our wishes and dreams come true. Plus, when our partner works with us, life has a funny way of magically becoming a lot easier, fun and rewarding.
So, how can you invite your partner to team-up with you so you can create your dreams and have your wishes come true? Here are 10 ways to get your partner on your team:
Show appreciation for the things, efforts and sacrifices they do and make
Focus on the positive
Give constructive feedback, only when asked
Ask your partner to brainstorm alternate solutions when you are both stuck on how to resolve something
Compromise – give in an inch
Show kindness, gentleness and thoughtfulness
Give lots of TLC (tender, love and care)
Show them you are listening (repeat back what they say) and understand their point of view (from their perspective not yours)
Don’t do the tit-for-tat game
Trade favors
When you operate from this “nice” place your partner will want to spend time with you, be with you, make life easier and share it with you. They’ll be in your team and help you create the life and partnership you want. So, go ahead and “invite” your partner into partnership!
Happy Partnering!!!
~ Your MetroRelationship ™ Assignment
Have a discussion about concrete behaviors you and your partner need to be of support to each other to allow each of you to accomplish and achieve your personal goals (i.e., trading babysitting, cleaning the house out of junk food, shopping for healthy foods and snacks, cooking healthy meals, sharing household chores, tweaking sleeping schedules, scheduling work out routines, putting certain amount of money for a specific endeavor, etc.)
Copyright (c) 2016 Emma K. Viglucci. All rights reserved.
Want to Use this Article in Your Own Website or Publication?
Be our guest! Here is how, you MUST include: Emma K. Viglucci, LMFT is the Founder and Director of Metropolitan Marriage & Family Therapy, PLLC, a private practice that specializes in working with couples, she is the creator of the MetroRelationship™ philosophy and a variety of Successful Couple™ content that assist couples succeed at their relationship and their life. Stay Connected™ with Emma and receive weekly Connection Notes in your inbox with Personal Growth and Relationship Enrichment insights and strategies, visit: www.metrorelationship.com.
People usually marry for love. A new phenomenon, only a couple of centuries old, in the history of the institution of marriage and in this culture. I say “usually” because sometimes people just get married because that is the thing to do, again speaking from today’s and this culture’s context.
But what people sometimes don’t realize is that in getting married they are entering a deeper partnership. Choosing to be in a long-term relationship / marriage, is one of life’s most important decisions. The influence of this partnership is infinite. This partnership can enhance each individual’s potential exponentially. How does the saying go? “The sum of the parts is greater than the whole.”
In our partnership we learn from our partner, we complement each other, we support each other, we work together, we collaborate, we brainstorm, we dream together, we synergize.
In our partnership we can heal ourselves and we can become whole. This is the “psycho-babble” part of this beautiful concept. The tangible piece is even more engrossing and awesome. In uniting efforts, resources, support, and dreams couples can truly achieve unimaginable riches (whatever “riches” might mean for the couple).
It’s incredible to me to see how partners hurt each other, undermine each other, hold each other back and wreck havoc in their relationship. It is incredible to me to see couples work against each other as opposed to together. They see and treat their partner as the enemy instead of the ally they truly are. They do not capitalize on the synergy inherent of the partnership.
These couples have unhappy and unsatisfying relationships and are stuck in their own personal growth and development. They are not advancing as they could. They are not living the life they want. They have not reached their fullest potential.
I have seen couples achieve the impossible. Couples can not only function as romantic partners but as life partners. How is your couple measuring up in terms of being “life partners”? What does being “life partners” mean to you? Is your definition limited to being together “’til death do as apart”?
Or, is your definition broader and includes ideas such as meeting each other’s needs, learning from each other, becoming whole, resolving repeating arguments, reaching agreements on conflicts, having joint goals and achieving them, having personal goals and achieving them, shooting for the moon, enjoying the journey, leaving a legacy, being excellent role models for your children and others, and anything you think belongs here?
Your relationship can be anything you want it to be and can help you live life to the fullest. It just requires two willing partners. Invite your partner to join you in creating a life long fantastic partnership!
Happy Life Partnering!!
~ Your MetroRelationship ™ Assignment
Share with your partner what you had envisioned for your life and invite them to do the same. Discuss how your visions are similar and how you can work together to achieve your dreams.
Copyright (c) 2016 Emma K. Viglucci. All rights reserved.
Want to Use this Article in Your Own Website or Publication?
Be our guest! Here is how, you MUST include: Emma K. Viglucci, LMFT is the Founder and Director of Metropolitan Marriage & Family Therapy, PLLC, a private practice that specializes in working with couples, she is the creator of the MetroRelationship™ philosophy and a variety of Successful Couple™ content that assist couples succeed at their relationship and their life. Stay Connected™ with Emma and receive weekly Connection Notes in your inbox with Personal Growth and Relationship Enrichment insights and strategies, visit: www.metrorelationship.com.
When was the last time you were physically intimate with your partner? If you say a long time, you are not alone! A lot of couples share their sexual life is in the toilet. They struggle getting along, among other things, to the point that being physically intimate is the furthest thing from their mind. Getting along is a big priority for these couples. They experience a lot of fighting, a lot of distance or a rollercoaster of both.
The fighting can range from bickering, disagreeing, passive-aggressiveness to full blown screaming, degrading and even aggressive matches. Regardless of the intensity, these couples are in constant turmoil in their attempt to be seen, acknowledged, accepted and cherished. They feel as if walking on barbedwire. One client shared he felt as if his stomach was full of broken glass.
For some couples conflict is so intolerable that they just prefer to avoid each other… These partners experience a gripping black whole in their chest and a sense of dread when in disconnection with their partner. The partner that usually prefers to be in connection feels as if they are falling off a cliff, but both partners struggle with the gloominess and stagnation.
Part of the reason couples end up in this place is because they tend to focus on the negative. They assign negative motives to their partner. They insist on pointing fingers and being the expert in their relationship as opposed to being accountable for their own contribution to the situation. And, they love to point out their partner’s shortcomings. Being the recipient of this treatment just plain sucks.
When partners treat each other this way, they touch the other’s vulnerable, already hurt and tender parts. It’s like adding salt to injury… What they invite as a result is the other’s usual way of coping with hurt, their defense mechanism. As defense mechanisms get activated, partners revert to less resourceful, appropriate and honoring ways of interacting leading to additional injury. Partners live in this state of affairs.
Over time the damage is so compounded that it is difficult for them to make sense of what is happening and to see the possibility of being able to have the relationship they want. They feel stuck, hopeless and believe the only way to have a happier existence is to get the heck out. But I see couples come back from this hopeless state and create beautiful relationships. I know it’s possible, and with targeted investment I know it’s possible for you as well.
So, here is to getting started on making this possible for you!
I am CHALLENGING you to stop the usual running script in your head, the dirty thinking about how much your partner stinks. Stop the incessant negative internal, and external, observations and chatter about your partner’s faults. I want you to STOP IT NOW.
Catch yourself having your negative assumptions and assigning of motives. Catch yourself nitpicking and looking for the imperfections. Catch yourself examining how your partner didn’t keep their word, follow up, finish a task, nagged you, etc.
Catch yourself thinking how your partner should be different. Just plain STOP IT! I want you to go cold turkey, detox, and eradicate this cancer that is ruining your relationship, and your life.
Instead I want you to do the exact opposite. I want you to scour every interaction, behavior, conversation, gift, etc. for how awesome and fabulous your partner actually is. I want you to SEE your partner. I want you to stop futzing around and take investing in your relationship seriously.
It’s time to make the changes you want and to make a full on commitment to making this happen. No more excuses. No just trying. Not making it work and not having the relationship you want are no longer options. Say yes to this different focus, and get to it!
I can imagine you just got to that last sentence and you were ready to go, and then doubt and fear crept back in. And, then you did your usual, “but why should I if my partner…” STOP IT! Challenge the part of your self that can’t take in the possibility of something different.
Stop making it about how your partner needs to change and about how much they stink. Start being accountable for what you contribute to your situation and how you invite what you get… Start inviting something different…
Start focusing on what’s awesome about your partner and how they do try… Clean your thinking. Give your partner a break. Envision the possibilities. Open the door to them. Refocus your investment and enjoy your partner! Complete the MetroRelationship (sm) Assignment below to help you effortlessly implement this, make changes and immediately start experiencing the relationship you want.
Happy Refocusing!
~ Your MetroRelationship ™ Assignment
Every night this week before going to bed, tell your partner 3 things you appreciate or like about them – be descriptive and detailed, authentic, and generous in your observation and sharing.
Copyright (c) 2016 Emma K. Viglucci. All rights reserved.
Want to Use this Article in Your Own Website or Publication?
Be our guest! Here is how, you MUST include: Emma K. Viglucci, LMFT is the Founder and Director of Metropolitan Marriage & Family Therapy, PLLC, a private practice that specializes in working with couples, she is the creator of the MetroRelationship™ philosophy and a variety of Successful Couple™ content that assist couples succeed at their relationship and their life. Stay Connected™ with Emma and receive weekly Connection Notes in your inbox with Personal Growth and Relationship Enrichment insights and strategies, visit: www.metrorelationship.com.
Partners love telling each other what to do, how to behave, how to be, what to think, how to feel, and even things like what to eat and how to dress! They are on a mission to change their partner, consciously or not. This is a sign of lack of boundaries and personal ownership. Partners love owning each other instead…
Owning each other disempowers both partners. The partners can’t be themselves… They have no control over what their partner does rendering them unable to create change if all the change is to come from their partner… In minding the other’s business they neglect to mind their own…
Partners love focusing on their partner and how much they stink, how they lack in some way. How they don’t do things, do things wrong, do the wrong things, and other goodies. The focus is negative. They don’t acknowledge, accept or cherish their partner. They don’t allow their partner to be themselves regardless of their warts.
Partners don’t own how they are inviting the behavior or attitudes that don’t meet their needs, what they are contributing to their situation, and how they are not being the ideal partner… This lack of boundary, ownership and accountability is detrimental to our relationship, our selfhood and our life!
It makes sense partners don’t believe change is possible, even though they are trying to change their partner! But, I’ve seen miracles happen when partners create space for their partner to be themselves, and focus instead on their own contribution to their life and relationship. They seem to have become different people and a different couple.
Change IS possible. We are not striving to change the core people. We are awesome just as we are. And, we don’t want to change our partner – that’s with whom we fell in love! On the other hand, we are striving to approach each other differently so we connect, meet our needs and support each other’s human Journey.
When we set proper and appropriate boundaries, own ourselves and are accountable we create safety, security and trust. We allow our Authentic Selves to come out and play. When our Authentic Selves show up, we can create the relationship and life we want.
Remember, let your partner do their thing, be themselves, have their side of the story, have their experience and perspective, have their own views. You don’t have to love it or even agree with it all. You are entitled to yours as well, and your partner does not have to love it or even agree with it all either. This boils down to acknowledging and accepting each other’s world. You don’t have to compete to Exist…
Acknowledging, accepting and validating your partner’s world does not nullify yours… You can both see and experience something differently. As a matter of fact, you will both see and experience things differently. This is the way things are. You are two separate individuals…
Our job is to bit by bit allow our partner’s world to exist, and to own our own. Doing this in a measured way, reassuring each other, supporting and acknowledging each other, and having compassion for ourselves and each other makes this task possible and manageable. Going too abruptly creates our partner’s and our own resistance. Be patient and loving with your Self and your Partner.
In conniving with each other we exist, collaborate, and create. We can create the relationship and life we want. We can contribute a better us to the world, we can create a better world… Complete the MetroRelationship (sm) Assignment below to help you effortlessly implement this, make changes and immediately start experiencing the relationship you want.
Happy Conniving!
~ Your MetroRelationship ™ Assignment
For the next three days, set aside a few minutes every night to share about an experience you each had that day. Take turns sharing and listening. When the sharing partner is done, the listening partner is to repeat the essence of the story to make sure they got their partner’s point. Then they are to validate their partner’s experience: Expressing how it makes sense. Validating the partner’s experience does not mean the listener agrees with the story, experience, event, how it was handled, or that they would have experienced it the same way… It means, the listener understands their partner’s experience and that it makes sense they would experience that given who they are…
Copyright (c) 2016 Emma K. Viglucci. All rights reserved.
Want to Use this Article in Your Own Website or Publication?
Be our guest! Here is how, you MUST include: Emma K. Viglucci, LMFT is the Founder and Director of Metropolitan Marriage & Family Therapy, PLLC, a private practice that specializes in working with couples, she is the creator of the MetroRelationship™ philosophy and a variety of Successful Couple™ content that assist couples succeed at their relationship and their life. Stay Connected™ with Emma and receive weekly Connection Notes in your inbox with Personal Growth and Relationship Enrichment insights and strategies, visit: www.metrorelationship.com.
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Emma K. Viglucci, LMFT has been in the mental health profession in varying capacities for the past 20+ years. She is the Founder and Director of metrorelationship.com a psychotherapy and coaching practice specializing in working with busy professional and entrepreneurial couples who are struggling getting on the same page and feeling connected. The work helps couples create a radiant and successful relationship and meaningful life by becoming a strong partnership and increasing their connection, intimacy, and fun. Emma is the creator of the MetroRelationship™ philosophy and the Successful Relationship Strategy™.
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