I recently asked the following question on Twitter:
“Married Peeps: What 140 characters of advice would you give to a single guy/gal who thinks “this one” might be “THE one”? Thanks!”
The responses were thoughtful, heartfelt, and humorous at times. I’ve placed the best answers below for you to peruse and perhaps even learn something from. Enjoy!
“Establish that your values are mostly similar & your opinions mostly different—& keep it that way.” – Daniel Thurston
“There is no ‘the one.’ But the one you choose for life becomes the one. Advice- Treat her like the one, and make yourself the two!” -Jay Brock
“New serious couples should discuss/weigh the big things (kids, church, money, heritage). It’s not all about romance.” - Dave Peckens
“My advice – There’s no “think.” You feel or you know, but thinking gets you in trouble.” - Ray Hartjen
“Advice: Give it a yr or 2 & have UR own lives.Focus on character, similar interests, how look at $/religion and values>then vows.” -Stacey Ross
“Don’t hyphenate when you marry! If she is the one, you still have to work at letting her know that, year after year.” – Rob Kerley
“Have you had a real fight? If not start one. If so, can you do it with love and respect? If not, wait until you can!” – Jesse Friedman
“What do you know about his/her childhood? family issues — and relationship w/siblings & live parents — will impact marriage. Dysfunctional family relationships in potential spouse not a deal breaker. But go in w/eyes open.” - Sarah Gilbert
“If you “think” they are the one, then they are not. When you know, you know.” – Michel Fortin
“Can you take a week-long vacay with her and not get into any blow-out-type fights? If yes, you’re well on your way.” - Arik Hanson
“Have patience. If you don’t have it, learn it. and if you have it, get more.” - Justin Parks
“Marriage is 10% bliss and 90% forgiveness of the other person’s shortcomings. Hard work but worth it.” - Nictos
“[you'll need (to be)] Sense of humor; thoughtfulness; supportive; understanding; be impressed by each other; unconditional trust; separate bank accounts.” – Teri Rehkopf
“If she doesn’t help inspire you each day, she’s not the one. Just working on 34 years, tho, so could be something different.” - Michael Whitlow
I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I did. If some bit of advice resonated with you, take a moment to get in touch with the author (names link to websites) and say thanks!
If you’ve got a bit of advice you’d like to add, share it in a comment. Thank you!
Seth
Inspirational Advice On Relationships & Marriage From Twitter | The Dating Papers
I did an informal survey a while ago asking happy couples what was the secret of their success and three words came out: patience, tolerance and forgiveness. Patience with each other’s ‘faults’, tolerance of each other’s ‘faults’ and forgiveness of each other’s ‘faults’. ‘Faults’ because no-one is perfect and no-one sees things exactly the same. If you want to know someone’s character, share difficult times.
That’s really great advice. Thanks for sharing the results of your poll!
I’m finding that the more I listen to the wisdom of others, the better I seem to do at navigating the intricacies of my own relationships. There’s no one path, but travel tips are always wonderful! =)
Thanks Chris!
What other websites offer free travel tips in South America?’;~
Think about when you’re with them if you’re happy. Then think about if you were ever apart and no longer together, say they broke it off with you, would you lose half of yourself and your whole world? Could you ever love again, anyone or as much? That’s how I know.