Ryan Jonathan

A healthy relationship is a phrase that we hear a lot of times and is thought to be needed to achieve happy life with our partner. But even with so much information regarding healthy relationships, sometimes we still wonder what is really the key to a healthy relationship. Is a healthy relationship really just about being happy? Or is it just about accepting their weaknesses? This article will dissect one crucial aspect of a relationship, communication. And to see what the benefit of having constant contact with your partner can affect your relationship.

Communication is about expressing and showing how we really feel in certain situations with other people. However, it is essential to know that when both people in a relationship are intentional about communicating effectively, the relationship will likely see significant benefits. But remember to be patient about improving communication, as it is a learned skill. Communicating effectively does not happen overnight. So, both parties’ constant effort to have the relationship work. So why is communication important, and how to figure out what’s needed in our relationship?

Here are a few reasons why communicating effectively with your partner is essential:

• Avoid misunderstandings

As we already know and realize, a relationship consists of two people. And with this being said, two different people can sometimes have a bad day. Sometimes we miscommunicate. Other times, we forget to say important things. Constant communication helps prevent miscommunication. When we express ourselves to the people we love, fewer things go unsaid.

• Reduce conflicts

Whatever the condition of the relationship we are in, conflicts in the relationship are something every couple has to deal with. However, not all conflict is bad, but it has to be resolved quickly and healthily. If the conflict is prolonged and one person starts behaving aggressively, it becomes unhealthy. So by communicating effectively, it will reduce prolonged conflict because by then, we would have expressed clearly what hurt and what they should have done instead.

• New perspective

It is normal to see things as they are because of the habit we are accustomed to. However, in a relationship, there will always be different perspectives in how we deal with even the most minor thing like pouring milk first or the cereal first. So, by communicating, it is also essential to be as flexible as possible to our partner’s habits. Keeping rigid opinions will only hurt both people in the relationship.

• Setting expectations

After setting each other’s expectations, it is safe to assume that it will minimize the possibility of conflict on the topic of what really matters regarding each other’s life. When expectations are set and agreed upon, there’s no question about what’s acceptable and how the other person feels as a result. Setting clear expectations will help couples communicate how they really want on the relationship’s journey.

While we know now why communications are essential in a relationship, we can start talking about effectively communicating with our partners. Because realizing the importance of communication is just the beginning of taking it into action. Here are a few steps you can start doing to communicate effectively with your partner:

• Be a good listener.

Communicating is not about expressing what we want to share and letting our partners listen. Both people should be included in the relationship to practice active listening. Communication is a two-way thing and is required to communicate effectively. If we are only talking without listening, then the talks are not going anywhere, and it won’t be effective communication but a one-way trip without anyone listening.

• Be respectful

Being respectful while communicating can help our partner be more susceptible to hearing what you have to say. Even just acting respectfully in general communicates and shows that you do have some kind of level of feelings for that person. It is essential to be respectful to our very own partners because they will be the ones accompanying us, the closest on our life journey, and share all the memories.

• Learn their love language

Love languages are an essential factor to consider because they correlate with communication. Someone’s love language could be words of affirmation. So communicating verbally to affirm them is an effective way to show them that we love them. Meanwhile, for a person’s love language to be physical, words of affirmation won’t be enough to show that you love them. Learning how our partner likes to receive love and give love will help the relationship tremendously.

At the end of the day, a relationship is a constant effort that goes on for quite some time and does not happen overnight. There is also no absolute way to find the most effective way to communicate with our partners. To understand, you need to learn about it. As for example, you can refer to several platforms for your exercise and give a big picture of relationship management. One way to do the simulation in a fun way is by playing a game such as Memories Interactive. In Memories Interactive, you can try to learn relationship management, such as the love language of each character. If you are interested to try and play, you can directly download and play this game through this link for Android and this link for iOS!