Couples With These 26 Attributes Have The Most Unbreakable Relationships
Here's how to have a relationship with an unshakeable foundation.
Goldmund | Canva Relationships can be wonderful and amazing, and finding the right person to spend your life with is a great goal. However, not all of them last. So what separates relationships that can weather tough storms from those that eventually come to an end? It turns out, that the best relationships have certain attributes that set them apart from others and make them more likely to last and develop into a deep, loving connection. There are even relationships that can qualify as "legendary" — and yours can, too, if you know the right combination of traits to make it strong and healthy.
What qualifies love as "legendary?" With that question in mind, I’ve developed a list of 26 key attributes that can transform the lives of you and your partner. My suggestion is to think of this as a list of traits you may want to have on your relationship "bucket list" and make it your goal to check off every item on there. I can assure you... once you experience all of them simultaneously, you’ll know exactly what a legendary love looks and feels like.
Couples with these 26 attributes have the most unbreakable relationships:
1. Appreciate each other
Every human being needs to be seen, heard, and appreciated — and not just when all is well. If you can offer that even when they fall short somehow, you’ll be well on your way to legendary status.
2. Become best friends with your partner
The most beautiful gift on this journey is a partner who just “gets you” and never loses sight of your greatness... especially in those moments when you, yourself, may overlook it.
3. Focus on communication
If you can vulnerably speak your truth with compassion, honesty, and grace — while hearing your partner also — you should be able to resolve any issue. Where there is a will, there is a way.
4. Devote yourselves to one another
Your connection to your partner starts with a decision and a willing commitment to do whatever it takes to keep your relationship fresh, thriving, and growing in the direction of your dreams.
5. Encourage each other
Whether you’re jointly celebrating your victories...or you could occasionally just use a reminder that your partner believes in you, a well-placed and well-timed positive word goes a long way.
6. Practice forgiveness
In any relationship, there will be occasional disagreements or disappointments that need to be addressed. Resentment and resistance can be cancerous when left unresolved.
7. Be grateful
It is a great game-changer when it comes to crafting a life of abundance and blessings. Where focus goes, energy flows...
8. Honor your partner
When you uphold your commitments and live in alignment with your deepest values and beliefs, you will sleep soundly with peace and satisfaction that many others will never know.
9. Stay intimate with each other
It’s not just about physical acts. A true soul connection also occurs when two hearts become one mind or when two voices speak as one.
10. Remember to celebrate the small joys
Too often, it's easy to get caught up in the daily dramas and life becomes more about obligation rather than celebration. A legendary love focuses on gratitude and blessings.
11. Practice kindness each day
There will always be disagreements in any relationship, but a thoughtful spirit and a kind heart will go a long way in creating resolution rather than resentment.
12. Always have love and laughter
It may be an oversimplification but partners that laugh together, stay together. That’s because a light-hearted approach helps balance out the more serious issues that come along.
13. Make wonderful new memories together
Together, you will both create and share many wonderful experiences on your journey from the simple, random moments of bliss to life’s more memorable milestones. Treasure them.
14. Nurture each other
It’s the small daily acts of service and thoughtful gestures that keep love alive for a lifetime and the key is understanding what your partner values most... and making that your love offering.
15. Keep your hearts open
When hearts remain open, committed, and forgiving, you will overcome any obstacles that occur along the way. A closed heart is just as painful for both partners because it destroys possibility.
16. Be passionate about each other and your life together
This lifetime is far too short to play small. Blessed are those who discover, live, and develop their passion in life and for each other. May you live life to the fullest and leave a lasting legacy.
17. Make time for each other
Good intentions just aren’t enough. It comes down to scheduling what’s most important and harnessing the power of Rituals for daily one-on-one connections and activities.
18. Reciprocate the love
If your partner loved you better than you’ve ever been loved, you’d do pretty much anything for them, right? That's the power of the law of reciprocation... and it works.
19. Always support one another
A successful partnership is about loyalty and trust that your partner is there for you in good times and challenging times, too. Double the joy. Divide the pain.
20. Be trustworthy
Trust is a bedrock value because you can’t build anything lasting on a weak foundation. You must know that your partner has your back and keeps your best interests in mind to thrive.
21. Be understanding
There will undoubtedly be moments of disagreement. If you never have to question your partner’s intent or prefer being right rather than in love, you will resolve almost any issue.
22. Allow yourselves to be vulnerable
Too often people confuse vulnerability with weakness and that couldn’t be further from the truth. Vulnerability is the ultimate strength and if you think it’s easy, you’ve never tried it.
23. Welcome new conversations and needs from one another
Over some time, you both will learn and grow so to stay on the same page, it’s important to stay open in heart and mind and welcoming in spirit.
24. Allow for free expression between the two of you
In life, there are two conditions. You are either expressed, or you are repressed. As long as you keep talking, you can resolve anything if you’re committed. Once you repress, trouble is lurking.
25. Yearn to have a fantastic love together
The first part of a healthy, fulfilling relationship starts with desire. It’s not just a desire for physical connection; it’s also a yearning to have, do, and be more. Long may you yearn.
26. Have no regrets over the path you've forged with each other
When you follow and practice all these suggestions, there’s a very good chance that you’ll truly have no regrets whatsoever because you understand the art and science of fulfillment.
Dave Elliott is a relationship coach, human behavior specialist, and author of The Catch Your Match Formula. He has appeared in multiple media outlets and publications, including eHarmony, PopSugar, Latina, Psych Central, and Fox News, among many others.