Relationship Rx - A Check Up!

2010 - Destined Relationship Rx - A Check Up! Links Website Blog Life & Business Coaching Young Adult Coaching Past Newsletters Press Purchase a Copy Welcome to February! My heart is heavy for the people in Haiti and for those who are without because of Haiti's devastation. To play some small role in helping I'm donating all profits from book sales during the next month to the American Red Cross. Purchase a personalized copy to help yourself and to help others. My friends at Two Blue Doors are offering personalized note cards for you with all of the profits going to help the people of Haiti. Don't miss this neat opportunity to help others and personalize your correspondence! February's Recap Week 5 Loving...You Read Derek Walcott's poem Love After Love. Feast on your life. Take one step to build your love for YOU! Week 6 Love Isn't Love Until You Give it Away Refuse to hold your love inside Share it - speak it, show it, write it, sing it Let those in your life know your love for them As your coach I want to encourage you to dream wildly, love wholeheartedly, persevere relentlessly, believe in yourself unwaveringly and give abundantly! If you are new this week...welcome...let's make 2010 your best year yet! For a recap of what we've covered during January visit the archives. In February we are covering love...and all things on love! God Bless, Margaret. This Week's Topic: Relationship Rx -- A Check Up! Dear Friend, "Success in marriage is much more than finding the right person; it is a matter of being the right person" ~Anonymous "What counts in making a happy marriage is not so much how compatible you are, but how you deal with incompatibility." ~Leo Tolstoy During the month of February, we've been focused on love - loving yourself, loving others and this week we turn to marriage. Professor James Cordova of Clark University, funded by the National Institute of Health, conducted research on 217 married couples. The research focused on intervention rather than therapy. The couples who participated in the intervention based research fared better than those who didn't participate. The result is six key questions for you! This week I would like you to use these six questions to reconnect with your significant other. My suggestion would be to take these questions on a date night, or discuss them with a glass of wine after your children are in bed or even a quiet moment one afternoon this weekend. In every relationship - no matter how strong - there are always things we can do to improve the relationship. Improving our relationship begins with respect and communication. When you bring up these questions do so with an open mind and open heart. Leave your armor at the door. Be open to the feedback that you receive - even if it is a surprise. Use these six questions to learn more about what your partner is thinking and how they are feeling inside your relationship. Allow this exercise to be a relationship check up! Make It Happen 1. How are we doing? Use this question to get a status update. 2. What is good about our relationship? Focus on what is working and the positives of your relationship. When you answer these questions for your spouse aim to identify twenty for them! 3. How can we work together on _____________? Let your spouse fill in the blank whether it is helping a child in crisis, communicating better, navigating compromises or even just picking a paint color for your kitchen be open to what they put in the blank. This question tells your spouse that you are in it together - whatever it is! 4. What do you need more of, from me? Listen carefully. Refuse to be defensive - listen and be open. Now isn't the time to say anything. 5. When we disagree how can we understand each other better? In other words, when we are fighting - and we all do, what can I do to understand you better? How can we fight better? When we aren't on the same page, what can I do or say to better understand you? 6. How satisfied are you with our intimacy? Remember there are all different types of intimacy - explore physical, emotional and spiritual intimacy. May you be blessed for you are a blessing! Encourage your friends, family, and colleagues by sharing this newsletter with them and invite them to subscribe! Direct them to www.MargaretPundmann.com where they can sign up. Margaret Pundmann is a life and business coach, speaker, and author of numerous articles on living your most powerful life. The "Powerful Living, Powerful You" newsletter is written and distributed by Emerge Enterprise. Copyright © 2010 Margaret Pundmann. All rights reserved.www.MargaretPundmann.com.