18 Methods To Strengthen Your Relationship (4 of 6)

Use the AAA approach

This stands for apology, affection, and action. To elaborate, you want to tell your partner that you’re sorry you hurt or disappointed them, offer a meaningful gesture like a hug or a kiss, and then pledge to take action that is meaningful for them. Using this approach to combat problems ensures that you’re not spending all that time arguing over what is right and wrong and solving nothing at all.

Focus on the bright side

When we have flaws rubbing against one another, it’s natural for us to gravitate towards the wrong or the bad and make a fuss over it. This doesn’t bode well since it makes people go on the defense and again nothing gets done.

Instead, focusing on the strengths of the relationship and what’s going well is smarter.

And in the cases of conflict resolution taking a positive stance can help too. It’s easier to find a solution when you say something like “hey, this is how I feel about this problem, let’s come up with a solution together.”

Have couples rituals

We all have individual rituals that we love to do and make us feel good. So how about you make some only for the two of you? For example, Saturday nights could be date night, or maybe you go out for Sunday brunch? You can also consider small rituals together like having breakfast together every morning or having a chat every night before bed.