Relationships are about giving and receiving

We here most couples complain about giving so much and not receiving enough in a relationship. There is usually one person in a relationship who is left unsatisfied and unhappy. This usually happens when we are not equally appreciated by our partner.

Every relationship should be a two-way street. Each person in a relationship should be giving and receiving 100% effort for and from their partner. They should be willing to stay up late with you as you would do for them. You should be willing to watch your partner’s favorite movie no matter how much you don’t like it. They would appreciate this and somehow repay the favor in the same or another way. Don’t consider it as a requirement or an obligation for your partner to always do these things for you though.

We have to be careful of our expectations of our partner. We shouldn’t make it unreasonably high or the opposite. When it’s too high, we will have a standard that our partner will sometimes not live up to. This may lead us to being unsatisfied with our partner. On the other hand, don’t make it a point to have too low expectations as well. This means that we don’t believe in our partner enough. We have to be confident enough that our partner will deliver as a good partner but not overconfident.

Love and relationships are two-way streets. No one is more than the other. Give and Receive. That is how it should be.