Write | Inspire | Dream
We’re just a few short days away from Valentine’s Day, and although I’m riding the holiday solo this year, I thought I’d offer my advice on how to work through relationship stressors and why living intentionally in your relationships is important. Relationships are tricky. No matter how you look at them, they all have their difficulties, and they’re all different. No relationship is without its challenges, but the easiest way to work through those challenges is to address them, figure out a solution, and move on. Unaddressed tension is the easiest way to create a divide in any relationship. Usually, this “unaddressed tension” stems from one person in the relationship committing to something other than that relationship.
So, Today on La.Rue, I want to discuss Living Intentionally in your Relationships; how you can attempt to balance your relationship with your career and social life while making sure you’re openly communicating with your partner. As I’ve said, Intentional Living has a lot to do with the people you surround yourself with. So your relationship with whom you share your life with dictates a lot of your decision-making, overall mood, etc. When you’re in a committed, long-term relationship, that person eventually becomes apart of every decision. So learning how to balance all of the important things in your life with each other so you’re happy is what’s most important.
Open Communication
Communication is key in every relationship you’re in. This doesn’t just apply to an emotional relationship but also your friendships, familial relationships, and others. Communication is the way we address our feelings and emotions to those we feel we can trust. Without open communication, especially in a partner relationship, it shows a lack of trust and understanding. Not only is your partner usually the person you share your every day with, but it’s the person you share your deepest emotions with. So if you’re in a relationship where you feel you can’t share everything or be your most authentic self, my advice is to address the situation with your significant other and see if there is a way to move forward.
Communication is the cornerstone of every relationship. It’s the way you build trust with your partner and how you continue to develop a relationship. Within communication is honesty. Something I’ve struggled with in the past is not addressing something that’s bothered me. When we fail to address things in a relationship, it creates a tension that can build and fester until eventually someone breaks. Instead of having a conversation about it in the past, it usually turns into a fight. When you leave the lines of communication open, it makes for much easier conversations throughout where honesty is just that, rather than an attack.
Balancing Your Love Life with Work & Play
Every person usually defines their lives in pillars: family, career, friends, etc. Each person has their own unique way of looking at the world, deciding what’s important to them, and how those things play out in their lives. As we get older, start families, build careers, our lives get more hectic and busy. It can become increasingly difficult to attempt to balance it all. My best and most honest recommendation for you is to always do what you feel is best for you. For some people, their career is the most important thing in their lives; for others, it’s their family, and what they do during the day has no significant standing in their life. Whatever it may be for you, always be honest with your partner and always look for a balance.
As our lives change, there will be different points in which things are more important than others. But balancing your love life with work and with friends doesn’t have to be too difficult if you set boundaries and make time for those things. By setting boundaries, I mean set specific time frames or stopping points for yourself at work so that you’re not late for your date. Whatever is most important to you, make sure you’re putting yourself and that first so that you’re happy with yourself and your relationships.
Always Feel Supported
Time and time again, I’ve told you that your dreams should always be something that come first in your life. Your dreams are important, and they’re never going to be achieved without you working to achieve them. Sometimes, this process can require extensive amounts of time, dedication, and power through. In a relationship, those dreams and that drive should always feel supported and never like a burden. Your partner should always be the person that is lifting you up, reminding you of your ability to achieve. A drive for success and achievement will always test relationships. I feel that as long as you’re making time for your relationship, and the communication is always open, you can successfully have both.
Every relationship is different, and just because you see something working or not working for another couple doesn’t mean it will or won’t for you. The number one thing you should feel in your relationship is supported and trusted. If your dreams feel like a burden to your significant other, then you’re simply not with the right person. Your relationships are every bit intentional as your career or your hobbies. They affect your every day, your mood, your decisions. Eventually, when you’re with the right person, a lot of those decisions are made together. Living Intentionally in your relationships means being honest with your partner, building that trust, and supporting one another so you can create an intentional life, together.
