Communication: The Key to Relationship Success

“[...] The success of a relationship is solely dependent on two factors: a man's ability to listen lovingly and respectfully to a woman's feelings, and a woman's ability to show her feelings in a loving and respectful way” (John Gray). When I read this simple and yet heavy quote, I was greatly perplexed. How can the success of any relationship be dependent only on two factors? Simply put with one word: communication. We tend to over complicate relationships, with anxieties and insecurities, oblivious to the solution literally being on the tips of our tongues. Closely inspecting this quote, however, I realized that this is a team effort, it is as much my responsibility as it is his. Therefore, mentally highlighting the woman's role; my role, in this team effort, all of a sudden created a serious challenge. As a 21-year-old woman, I find it extremely difficult at

Due to the fact that I want a successful relationship as much as the next girl, I began my personal growth endeavor. By examining my relationship with my significant other, it is clear that learning to better distinguish between thoughts and feeling, including being able to name my feelings as they arise is of vital importance for the survival of my relationship.

I have been in my current relationship for the past two years. The self-concept that I have come to know is that I am a reserved person, however I have the ability to make people feel that they know me really well. My significant other, however, due to to his own