May 21, 2014

3 Unique Tricks To Make You The Best Partner Possible

If you found your way to this article that means that you are automatically a phenomenal person.

Seriously.

What kind of person takes time out of their day to try and become an even better boyfriend/husband/partner to their significant other? An awesome person, that’s who.

By following one or all of the following three unique steps I guarantee that you will be a better partner than you were for all of the days in your life leading up to this one.

So try one of these on for size. Your partner will thank you.

Here are three unique tricks to make you into the best partner possible.

1. Become An Expert Listener

By far the two most common complaints that I hear from my female clients are that their partners don’t take the lead often enough, and that they don’t feel like their partners truly listen to them.

The first step in becoming an expert listener is eliminating all other distractions (TV, cell phone, etc.) in your environment and facing them directly. By angling yourself at them and giving them your complete eye contact and attention, it’s so much easier to hear what they want to share with you.

The second step in becoming an expert listener is in understanding what kind of feedback most women are looking for while speaking with their partners.

Men are prone to conversing in two modes: challenging and problem solving. In man world, guys frequently use communication as a means of saying “I’m thinking this thing because it’s a problem… help me solve it”. So when guys hear their partners talking about their days with them, they assume that she must also want her problems solved.

But she isn’t looking for you to solve her problems (most of the time). She’s looking for you to validate and encourage her emotional reality.

The final tip that I will include in this section is that if she happens to tell you about certain things that are coming up for her in her life (like, for example, a hair cut) then mentally catalogue it and write it in your calendar as soon as possible. That way, even if she only gets an inch cut off (which you likely wouldn’t have noticed) you’ll remember to comment on it because your calendar reminded you of the special day.

“Why yes I did get my hair cut! Well aren’t you an attentive and detail-oriented guy!”

2. Become A Random Acts Of Kindness-Ninja

If you’ve been following my website for a while you’ll know that I’m a huge fan of random acts of kindness within the context of your relationship. That is to say, injecting little romantic gestures into your relationship at unexpected intervals can work wonders for greasing the wheels of your overall mutual relationship satisfaction.

Celebrating her birthday or holidays with sweet gestures is one thing, but doing them when she doesn’t expect them? That stuff is golden. Half of the fun is the fact that it’s a complete surprise.

Want some simple tips and ideas?

– Throw her towel in the dryer when she’s in the shower and hand it to her when she’s done so that she has a hot towel to dry off with.

– Stock your fridge with a sampling of her favourite drinks

– Cook her her favourite meal

– Write up a list of 50 things that you love about her and leave it for her somewhere she wouldn’t expect it

– Take her out to an unexpected event that you think she might like (concert, improv, theatre, ballet, etc.)

Whatever the random act of kindness is, make sure that you calibrate it to your partner for maximum effect.

3. Add Value To Her Life, And The Lives Of Those She Loves

A mature, emotionally evolved man is aware of himself, his immediate environment, and his community at large.

Take this mindset into becoming the ultimate partner by consciously looking for ways to add value to the life of your partner, and those that she holds dearest to her.

It’s one thing if you score some brownie points close to home by making your partner a romantic dinner out of nowhere, but it’s a whole other level of “Wow, you really didn’t have to” if you offer to babysit her new niece, or fix her parents’ lighting fixtures.

If the emotional reality of your partners extended network (best friends, family members, etc.) matters to your partner, then it matters to you.

Show you care by not just adding value selectively to her life, but to those of the people she cares about and get ready for a whirlwind of gratitude (don’t do it simply for the approval/validation, but rather because you genuinely like making her happier and more stress free).

Try it out, and see how it makes you feel. My bet… you’ll want to keep doing it just to feel like a deeply generous contributor of value to the world. Her happiness will just be an added bonus.

Want To Be The Ultimate Relationship Partner?

If there’s one thing that I’ve learned from fifteen years of monogamy it’s this… you can stand out from the crowd so easily with just a little bit of intentional energy focused towards your relationship.

But it isn’t satisfying on an internal level to just barely squeeze by the competition… you want to run laps around them!

So go onwards. Love deeply. Love with your full heart. And love with intention.

Dedicated to your success,

Jordan

Jordan Gray
About Jordan Gray

Jordan Gray has been a sex and relationship coach for over 15+ years, with his work reaching over 200 million people worldwide. His writing has been featured in Vogue, GQ, The New York Times, Cosmopolitan, Women’s Health, and countless other publications around the world. When he’s not working with 1-on-1 coaching clients or writing a new article, he’s most likely to be found reading, chopping wood, or spending time with his wife on a little island off the west coast of Canada.

Blog

Related

See All
5 Powerful Ideas You Can Use For Valentine’s Day
Feb 3, 2015
Jordan Gray
5 Powerful Ideas You Can Use For Valentine’s Day
Valentine’s Day is coming up soon… do you know what you’re going to do for it? Whether you celebrate the holiday with a significant other or not, these five powerful ideas will be good ones to keep in your back pocket for future use. If you are celebrating the holiday, please, please, please avoid...
Continue Reading
All Of Your Suffering Was Worth It
Mar 14, 2016
Jordan Gray
All Of Your Suffering Was Worth It
I’ve been through a lot in my lifetime. You’ve probably been through a lot of challenging things too. That’s just the nature of being a human being who has lived for more than a few years. Life is messy. None of us get through unscathed. We all collect wounds and scar tissue throughout our lives, be...
Continue Reading
7 Ways NoFap Improves Your Relationship (And Your Life)
Jul 16, 2020
Jordan Gray
7 Ways NoFap Improves Your Relationship (And Your Life)
Think your chronic masturbation habit could be negatively impacting your relationship? Well, you may be right. And you’re also not alone. If you don’t spend much time on internet forums, you probably missed the millions of men who have already been sharing their struggles in love and sex, and...
Continue Reading
The Shadow Doesn’t Want To Be Seen
Jun 13, 2018
Jordan Gray
The Shadow Doesn’t Want To Be Seen
*All identifying information has been significantly altered to protect anonymity* - In my last ten years of working with coaching clients 1-on-1, I’ve been fortunate enough to see a lot of amazing things take place. I have helped people go from anxious, shy, and single, to marrying the...
Continue Reading
How To Date Someone Even If You Are Married
Jan 15, 2014
Jordan Gray
How To Date Someone Even If You Are Married
The courting phase of your relationship shouldn't end just because you tied the knot. If you actively date your partner (the one that you are already with, of course), you will appreciate them that much more and your relationship will thrive. You know that investing in your relationship is important,...
Continue Reading
8 Vital Things Women Need to Know About Men
Jan 2, 2020
Jordan Gray
8 Vital Things Women Need to Know About Men
Shelves have been filled with books trying to explain the sexes to each other. Despite what some want to believe, we have our differences. And there’s nothing bad about that. It’s not about better or worse. It just is what it is. When it comes to men and women, there are statistically...
Continue Reading