Relationships Information

Relationships That Really Last: Is This the Secret?


In my e-book, How to Build Relationships That Stick, I told over a story I once heard in the name of a famous relationships counselor who talks on radio shows. It was claimed to be an authentic account of something that happened in real life, but even if it's apocryphal, I'm very much inclined to believe it could happen.

A man decided to divorce his wife because, he said, he no longer loved her.

Unfortunately, for some technical reason, he could not file for the divorce for six months. Being a reasonable fellow, he decided to make the most of the situation. Just for the heck of it, he would make a list of all the things he would do, if he truly loved his wife.

So he began doing all those things. And the result? He was soon madly in love with the woman he couldn't stomach a few months earlier.

One thing we can learn from this is that love - I mean real, authentic love, not the Hollywood variety - is the product of giving, not of taking. (See my article: Give-and-take: Recipe for Success in Marriage.) But there's more.

The whimsically romantic notion that love just happens, that Cupid either strikes you with his arrow or he doesn't, is just that. It's a concept that has its place in romantic novels, but it has little to do with real life.

I'm not denying, of course, that chemistry is often an important component in relationships, but at best, it's only part of the story. Anyone who's interested in a lasting, satisfying, "sticky" kind of relationship, the kind that may lead to a lifetime of bliss, knows that he or she has to work hard.

Darned hard. On the first day, the second day, and every day thereafter. Period.

A professor of psychology recently wrote a book with an intriguing title: The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Less. In an article explaining his rationale for writing the book, Barry Schwartz alludes to the stunning array of choices available to people in modern Western society, in every sphere of their lives.

Just walk into the average supermarket in search of hair-care products, and you may have 300 or more shampoos, conditioners and the like to choose from. In countless areas of life in which we used to have few or no options, we have to make continuous choices. And of course, the present day "explosion of tolerance" for "alternative" lifestyles has given us a further set of choices unknown to our grandparents and which have far reaching implications.

But if it seems logical that having more to choose from should make us happier, in fact the opposite is true. Schwartz quotes the findings of respected researchers that "increased choices and increased affluence have, in fact, been accompanied by decreased well-being."

Now read the story of the guy who wanted to divorce his wife again.

Makes you think, doesn't it?

Azriel Winnett is creator of Hodu.com - Your Communication Skills Portal. This popular free website helps you improve your communication and relationship skills in your business or professional life, in the family unit and on the social scene. New articles added almost daily. Visit Azriel's blog at: http://hodu.com/blog.


MORE RESOURCES:

Sydney Morning Herald

The failure of schools to educate
Sydney Morning Herald, Australia - 6 hours ago
These relationships are often transient and disposable, and lack authenticity. Social skills are under-exercised in some families. This can lead to children ...


David McMillian: Family dynamics affect future relationships
Shreveport Times, LA - 45 minutes ago
Dear David: I come from a family of real messed up relationships. My mother and father divorced when I was small, and both my sisters and brother are now ...


Nick Jonas Relationships in Song
TheCelebrityCafe.com, NY - Sep 6, 2008
Her new song, entitled “I’m Sorry,” is about a relationship, and although it doesn’t specify which relationship it is talking about, it’s pretty easy to ...


Legislating relationships
Kingston Daily Freeman, NY - 1 hour ago
If you're an elected official in the state of Maryland and you have a sexual relationship with one of your employees, you're violating state ethics law. ...


Relationships with Whit: Dressing well through the ages
Houston Chronicle, United States - Sep 6, 2008
By WHITNEY CASEY Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle Nicholas met Veronica one night when each was out with friends. His were all around 40, like him, ...


Legislating family relationships
Concord Monitor, NH - 2 hours ago
What amazes me about their position is that they're waiting for a law to legislate a relationship with their children. This is usually the same group of ...


Kansas City Star

Former mayors endorse Barnes
St. Joseph News-Press, MO - 3 hours ago
by Ken Newton Three former mayors stood on the steps of St. Joseph City Hall Sunday and extolled the virtue of relationships among cities. And one of them, ...
Barnes endorsed by two former St. Joseph mayors Kansas City Star
all 2 news articles


BBC News

'Dozens' of under-16s have STIs
BBC News, UK - 1 hour ago
At the clinic in Paisley, Renfrewshire, two 14-year-old girls told BBC Scotland that most of their friends were in sexual relationships. ...


HUMAN MATTERS: Authentic anger needed to grow in relationships
Las Vegas Review - Journal, NV - 22 hours ago
Is there a place for yelling angry things in a great relationship? It has taken me a long time to wield, to own, to believe the answer to this question. ...


Jamaica Gleaner

Make-up sex shakesup relationships - Spousal rows lay surprising ...
Jamaica Gleaner, Jamaica - Sep 6, 2008
Rayon Barnes tells Saturday Life that 'post-World War' sex can rejuvenate a relationship, saying it is equivalent to 'gettin' some' for the first time. ...

Relationships - Google News

Home | Site Map| Link Partners

Powered By: Free Google Adsense Websites!

© 2006