Empowered Relationship Podcast: Your Relationship Resource And Guide

In a recent study, Lee and his colleagues looked at the impact of a "unity" mindset versus a "journey" mindset on relationship satisfaction. Participants were asked to take a quiz, which exposed them ...

A listener submitted this topic for this week's online relationship help episode, which is How To Stop The Drama In Relationship. We all probably have different definitions of "relationship drama," but I am referring to ...

To watch the Get To Know You Giveaway winner video,

Don't forget to take the Get To Know You Giveaway Survey, before April 30th, for the chance to win a $250 gift card to a nice dinner out or couples massage. Dealing ...

Technological devices are a part of our lives. Most of us have smartphones and use them consistently throughout the day. They are impacting the quality of our relationships, our attention, and ability to be present.

Wedding Ceremony In this episode, you will hear my husband, Reid Peterson, and I share a little bit about our journey and some of what has been significant to us over the last several years. Recording this ...

In this episode, I share my personal story of falling in love and having relationship challenges. Hear how I dealt with it, what I learned, and what ultimately ended up happening for me. Here are the ...

All too often, we avoid challenges in our relationship. Either we don't know how to address our concerns skillfully or we are afraid of creating tension and upset. While we want to increase the likelihood ...

The Relational Approach emphasizes the priority of the relationship. It puts the focus on the quality of connection and bond, rather than any task or agenda at hand. Here are 4 C's to help you practice ...

Agreements help foster clarity, confidence, progress, and trust. Setting up a conversation for success can be the most important part of being effective. STATING & ASKING Men will often use the language, "We should ________." Women will often use the language, "Do you want to _______." Goal is to use transparent and clear language, like, "I would like _______. What do you want? CHECKING IT OUT & CLARIFYING Getting clear personally Being true and honest (not falling into the pattern of feeling obligated) Giving only what you have and being willing to say no. Getting to a win/win Using reflective listening. Here is an article that offers step-by-step guidance. BEING EXPLICIT ABOUT THE AGREEMENT Listening is not a form of an agreement Anchoring the agreement in time. For example, "Friday at 3pm let's check-in. I will plan on doing ________." This can be helpful because it is easy to get distracted, busy, and get into avoidance patterns. RENEGOTIATING, IF NEEDED You make the best agreement you can, and if something changes, you always have the opportunity to renegotiate. If you realize that you need to change some aspect of the agreement, give your partner a heads up and ask for a renewed agreement. HONOR YOUR PART If you take the time to be clear about what you are willing to do and what you are not willing to do, then it will be much more likely that you can follow through and honor your word. This can increase positive feelings in the relationship as well as within yourself. Thank you so much for investing in the process of improving your relationship skills. If you have a question that you would like me to answer, please leave me a voice message, by clicking on the "Ask Dr. Jessica Higgins" button here. Also, I would so appreciate your honest rating and review, if you would be willing to click here. Thank you!