Building a relationship has to do with making a friendly connection with people and maintaining it. Sustaining a relationship revolves around things you need to do to keep the relationship alive and healthy.
There are four different types of relationships and they include:-
Family relationships
Friends
Acquaintance
Romantic relationships
But in this article we will keep our focus on romantic relationships.
A romantic relationship is a relationship whereby you feel strongly connected or attracted to another person, in a way you won’t feel with any other person, mostly because of their personality and sometimes their physical appearance.
STEPS IN BUILDING A ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP
Like I said earlier, there are four different types of relationships, but some romantic relationships are built on the basis of friendship and acquaintance. Some people build romantic relationships with friends whom they trust, respect, care about, can confide in and want to spend time with. While some build theirs with acquaintances whom they may encounter regularly but feel attracted or bonded to in a way they won’t feel with others.
In building a romantic relationship, there are seven steps involved:-
Make a friendly approach to build connections
Be persistent because people sometimes feel shy and insecure so it takes time to win their trust.
Get to know each other
Show signs of love and care
Go places together and do things together
Overcome the fear of rejection. Some people fear being rejected so find it difficult to say their minds and ask the other party for a relationship even after they have gotten close enough for that.
Accept the other party the way he or she is.
SUSTAINING A ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP
There are many successful and failed relationships around us today. Most failed relationships are due to inability to sustain the built relationships. In order to sustain a built relationship, you must know the following:-
Learn to appreciate one another:-
No matter how little, appreciation is needed from both parties from time to time to keep the relationship going.
Pay attention to one another:-
Learn to check in on your partner from time to time at least in the morning and evening. It makes them feel important and being thought of. Pay attention to their health, likes and dislikes.
Be a good listener:-
Learn to listen to what your partner has to say without interrupting, understand him or her before giving your opinion about issues and also make him or her see reasons with you too.
Surprises:-
When I mean surprises, I mean surprising them with gifts that they never expected. You can travel to places for one thing or the other but always remember to get something for your partner, no matter how little, they will appreciate it. You can also check what your partner is in need of without telling him or her and also surprise them with it.
Communication:-
Communication can be seen as the pillar of any relationship. Without communication, there is no chance to talk about important things, hence, misunderstandings can occur and tension can be built up. No matter how distant your partner is from you, calling him or her once in awhile to check up on them can make them feel important. Even though the thoughts of cheating crosses their minds, they won’t betray you because they know you care and they know you won’t be happy about it.
Memories:-
Learn to talk about beautiful memories you shared together, it makes the relationship feel young.
Always encourage each other to do better:-
In a relationship, both parties love to be encouraged to do better especially when they feel like losing hope. Those little words of encouragement when they are about giving up because of life’s challenges can go a long way in turning things around and making things better.
Commitment:-
You should be willing to walk together even in difficulties, plan your future together, protect each other’s hearts and privacy, avoid betraying your partner by having an affair with others.
Always celebrate important dates and achievements:-
Celebrating important dates like birthdays, anniversaries, etc. can make you both feel special. As well as celebrating your partner’s achievements makes them encouraged to do more and feel special.
Love:-
Your love for your partner should be an agape love. Meaning you should be willing to put them first and go out of your way just for them.
WHAT TO DO WHEN YOUR RELATIONSHIP GETS MESSY
Sincerely, if there is no conflict in a relationship, then there is a chance that one of you is holding something back. Conflicts mainly occur due to differences in both parties. Here are a few steps on how to deal with that.
Take ample amount of time to listen to each other without interrupting while the other person talks.
Put yourselves in each other’s shoes and try to understand why the other person has a different view of the situation.
Allow your partner to have some time and space to work out their emotions when they are upset before trying to work things out because people tend to say a lot of things they don’t mean when they are upset.
Learn to apologize when you need to even if you feel horrible about it. An apology might be all it takes to put that relationship in order again.
Learn to speak from your heart without using words that can hurt the other’s feeling.
Act in a respectful and thoughtful manner when issues arises, even when your partner doesn’t. Your behaviour will change his or her heart and improve your relationship.
Learn to forgive when your partner wrongs you. Understand why he or she acted that way and talk to him or her about it, let them know why you didn’t like what they did and why it shouldn’t repeat itself again.
Never pass a night without settling your problems with each other.
** NOTE:- Sustaining a relationship maybe hard but it is definitely not impossible.
By:- Ub Jiano