I want you to think back to when you were just a wee lad… Who is your best friend in elementary school? Who is your best friend in middle school? What about high school? College?
Well, the way you’ve been communicating with your best friends your whole life is the same way you should communicate with your wife right now. Many men do not understand this or do not practice this piece of advice, and I personally feel that this is part of the reason why divorce rates are so high right now.
Of course, it’s easier said than done, so as you continue reading this article I’m going to show you what you need to do to repair your relationship with your wife and take your marriage communication to the next level.
Sound good?
Is Your Wife Your Best Friend?
If you’re like most of us, then you’ve probably had two or three “best friends” throughout the years. Even if you didn’t know it at the time, your relationships with those people all had one thing in common…
You can feel safe telling ANYTHING to your best friend
Stories, experiences, negative feelings, happy feelings, criticisms, hard times, good times… You can share everything with your best friend!
So, how does that differ from how most men handle relationships with their wives?
Most Men Don’t Like Sharing Negative Feelings
If you’re anything like most husbands, you probably don’t have a problem sharing all of the good times with your wife. I’m sure the you love telling her a good story and sharing good experiences with her.
After all, that’s what marriage is all about, right?
Well, it actually goes deeper than that… A big part of a healthy marriage is having a trusting relationship where you’re free to discuss both positive and negative feelings with one another. Just like your relationship with your best friend, your relationship with your wife should have no boundaries when it comes to topics of conversation.
In other words, if you feel there is a problem within the relationship, address it in the same way you would with your best friend.
Explain your problems politely, empathetically, and generally, and focus on finding a solution rather than placing blame.
What Happens When You Allow Marriage Problems to Fester?
I mean, do I really need to answer this question?
Here’s a fun fact for you: Approximately 55% of people admit that they don’t tell their partners about problems they see in the marriage, and the US divorce rate is 46%.
Which couples do YOU think are getting divorced: The ones that openly address their problems for the ones that let them boil under the surface?
The Importance of Friendship in Marriage
The fact of the matter is that no marriage has ever been all fireworks, all the time. 1 year, 2 years, 3 years, 10 years, 25 years go by, and things won’t ALWAYS be exciting, or necessarily even enjoyable.
There will be problems; there will be down time; there will be sacrifice. That’s not to say that you can’t have an exciting and passionate marriage your ENTIRE life, but it IS to say that it will take work.
