Couple goals: 7 relationship goals to strengthen your bond

Even though Instagram shouts out couple goals through photos and videos all day, we know that every relationship in the world has its ups and downs. Some days you can’t get enough of each other, other days you don’t want anyone near your personal space. You squabble, stop talking to each other and sometimes even leave the house angry. But when you need help or are going through an emotional turmoil, you reach out to your partner first. Because you know they genuinely care about you inspite of your personal differences. Relationship goals are when they listen without judgement and are there for you no matter what.

For any relationship to thrive or even survive, couples must put in the work. It’s easy to assume that love alone is enough to get you through the troubled times. Love is a key component in achieving couple goals, but it’s not everything. This is why you need to keep working on your relationship. It all starts with setting healthy relationship goals that can strengthen your bond with your partner. These goals can help develop understanding between partners, increase happiness and make time spent together blissful.

If you are looking for ideas, here is a list of goals that you can aim for to improve your relationship with your loved one.

Accept imperfection

An imperfection is a detail that makes something or someone less than perfect. It’s not unusual to have something that we don’t want others to see or know—maybe a weakness or a flaw that we hide from others. We think that flaws make us less desirable, but what we don’t realise is that our imperfections make us human.

When couples understand that no one is perfect, their relationship begins to thrive. When partners accept the less than perfect parts of each other, they connect more deeply as they no longer hide or pretend to be someone else. Once they can truly be their authentic selves, they learn to love and be loved for who they are. So, one of the most important couple goals is to embrace each other’s imperfect selves.

Understand each other

One thing that most couples look for in a relationship is solid understanding. Every person wants their partner to understand their perspective. Think about it, wouldn’t you want to be heard? The kind of understanding you have with your loved one can go a long way in determining how successful your relationship will be. Because where there is understanding, there is mutual appreciation and respect.

You both can express knowing full well that you are protected and have little to worry about. Such a feeling brings emotional attraction and consequently strengthens the bond between the two.

Improve communication

Every relationship expert will tell you that communication between a couple is the most important thing. Only when you clearly tell your loved one what you need or are experiencing will be they able to understand and support you.

Without clear communication, your partner won’t know what you want and may begin to assume things. When this happens, you may feel left out or anger and resentment may build within, negatively impacting your relationship.

If you don’t communicate well with your partner, they may feel isolated and misunderstood, which will lead to arguments and worse—no communication at all. So, work on improving your communication if you haven’t started already.

Wondering how? Motivational speaker Tony Robbins says, “To improve communication in your relationship, you must discover how to listen, not how to talk.” By making this simple change, you can strengthen your bond with your loved one.

Plan date nights

This is a tip movies suggest a lot but in reality, it indeed holds a lot of significance. Date nights are crucial to keep the spark alive in a relationship. It’s time you spend with your spouse talking about anything and everything under the sun. This particular date doesn’t have to be an elaborate affair and can be planned at home too. Simply carve out a time each week to spend with your partner. The idea is to catch up with whatever is happening in their life sans any distractions.

Doing so let’s your loved one know that they matter to you and are not being taken for granted. This is one couple goals you can’t afford to ignore!

Build healthy boundaries

Sure you are very much in love and together, but establishing healthy boundaries allows you to have a life outside of the relationship. Some time apart from each other is essential because you retain a sense of identity and create a much needed personal space.

Boundaries can be anything from demanding time to pursue your hobbies, standing up for your beliefs to not being ‘okay’ with certain type of behaviours. If communicated early and properly, they help your partner understand you better and improve your relationship.

Respect each other

You may not agree with your partner on everything. Sometimes their behaviour or actions might even annoy you. But it is important to treat their beliefs, opinions or actions with respect. Of course, you can voice your disagreement but do not try to put them down or criticise unnecessarily.

If you don’t like something your partner said, simply say “I don’t agree with you. But I respect your views.” By saying this, you are letting your partner know that your relationship is strong enough for both to have distinct thoughts and opinions. Real relationship goals are when respect is maintained on both sides.

Make each other a priority

Wedding vows across the world advocate making our better halves a top priority. No matter what relationship status you flaunt, making your partner a priority means you value their needs as much as your own. It means working as a team and doing everything possible to make each other happy.

Thus, no matter how busy you are, make an effort to make your spouse feel special – you don’t have to move a mountain to make them happy—just listen and be there for them when they need you.