Getting married is a life changing moment for both you and your partner. No matter how long you’ve been together as a couple, marriage is the ultimate milestone. Although you may still be caught up in the excitement of the honeymoon phase, marriage can be difficult. However, there are ways to cultivate a healthy relationship long term. Here are a few tips to help you maintain the love and passion you have as newlyweds into your marriage for years to come.
Practice Open Communication
The ability to listen and effectively communicate with your partner is vital for a strong and successful marriage. Especially after you move in together, communication is more important than ever.
Be open with each other about your thoughts and feelings, and don’t assume anything. Always ask questions and check in regularly to see how you both are doing. Throughout your marriage, you and your partner will probably make mistakes, so be ready to forgive each other and treat each other with respect even when you disagree.
These small habits and conversations will help you develop strong communication skills early on in your marriage which will then help you overcome any conflict or hardships. Open communication will also help build trust in your relationship and allow you to better resolve arguments and come to healthy resolutions. As long as you’re honest and don’t hide anything from each other, you’ll be well prepared for a long and healthy marriage.
Set Common Goals
Marriage is a lifelong commitment, or at least it’s supposed to be that way. To make your relationship last successfully, set life goals with your partner. What do you want to work towards as a couple?
These goals don’t need to be elaborate, but think about what you want to achieve in the future. This could include buying a house, having kids, getting a pet, or even moving to a new city. Setting both short term and long-term goals will help create a clear vision of your lives together and make you excited for the future of your marriage. Once you achieve these goals, create new ones so you’re always looking forward to more milestones.
Organize Your Finances
Finances can be stressful to manage individually, let alone with your partner. Although there are many aspects to a healthy marriage, organizing and managing your finances is key for maintaining a strong relationship.
Once you get married, sit down with your partner and discuss your current financial situations and determine a monthly budget to live on. An organized budget will ensure you live within your means and can help you save for any financial goals. As a couple you should also consider creating an emergency fund to account for any unexpected life changes, and decide if you’re going to combine bank accounts.
However you organize your finances, make sure you have a plan to tackle debt. Depending on what age you get married, you and your spouse will likely have student loan debt, credit card debt, or other loans to pay off. If this is the case, paying off debt should be one of your top priorities so it doesn’t cause stress on your marriage. Make room in your budget to dedicate for these payments, and consider cutting costs on extra expenses like unused subscriptions or dining out. If you and your spouse are homeowners, you can also tap into your home’s equity for extra money to tackle high interest debt. Although you’d be taking out another loan, this option gives you the money in one lump sum and usually has a lower interest rate than personal loans or credit cards.
Spend Quality Time Together
It can be hard to find time to connect with your partner as you get older and have more responsibilities. However, if you want to maintain a healthy marriage long term, it’s essential to spend quality time together as a couple.
Even if you both have busy schedules, plan a date night at least every month and commit to going. You can even plan double dates with other couples and try new activities to keep the dates interesting. If you’re having trouble agreeing on activities to do together, try to find shared interests and passions. Even if you and your partner are polar opposites, there has to be something you both enjoy doing. This could be as simple as watching a movie or TV show, going on walks, or even traveling.
No matter what you do, be present and limit any distractions so you can truly connect and bond with each other. Time is precious, especially when you have to balance work, children, and other responsibilities, so make the most of it.
