Starting a relationship in the best possible way
One of the main reasons why relationships fail in the short term is because they never really got started in a way that represented the relationship as something long-lasting. A lot of relationships decline as they can’t sustain, or they deviate away from the core foundations that they were built on. Starting a relationship in the best possible way is key to making it a lasting and fulfilling relationship, as well as knowing pretty early on if it really is the right relationship for you…
A SUPERB metaphor for relationships:
As a general rule of thumb and from my own personal experience of relationships, whatever you set in place for the relationship in the beginning will remain in place in the long term. What a lot of guys will do is be the nice, doting boyfriend early on, who will do whatever his new girlfriend wants and generally try to impress her as much as he can. Then, once he feels secure enough in the relationship, he will start to slack off and take a more dominant stance. He will then wonder why this does not get the same reactions he is used to.
If at any point you change how you act in your relationship suddenly, of course your partner will react in a confused manner; you are effectiverly contradicting your core beliefs and ideals that she thought formed your identity. What you are effectively saying is, “this is how I actually want to act and the way I was acting before was just to manipulate and win you over”. It is a tough predicament for a guy in that situation though because if you act like a supplicating boyfriend in the beginning, you are doomed to be the ‘pussy-whipped’ boyfriend in the long run. Most guys realise this, if not immediately, then a little way down the relationship timeline and therefore find themselves in a slight dilemma.
The best metaphor I have heard for this scenario is to think of the relationship like pottery. When you start the relationship, you have the clay in your hand and you can shape it how you like. If you make a small error or venture slightly from your core beliefs momentarily, you can reshape it with minimal effort. However, once the relationship has reached a certain point, such as an exclusive relationship, the relationship is set, like the pottery being put in the kiln and hardening the creation forever. The only way you can then reshape the relationship is to seriously damage it and possible break it forever, in the same way that a piece of pottery suddenly becomes fragile once it has been glazed and finished. 
So how can you stop this happening?
You want to lay out your standards from the beginning and take control of the relationship, almost before it reaches any kind of official status. This is not in any kind of vindictive way though and you should definitely make sure you do not become the relentless, uncompromising boyfriend or girlfriend.
It comes down to a whole mindset shift within yourself and your overall attitude towards men and women and the roles that they play within a relationship. The main reason why men become needy in a relationship is a lack of abundance with women. They are so scared of losing the girlfriend they have because they have no idea when the next one will come along. This is largely true for women too although being more emotionally charged than men, their neediness stems more from a hardwired need for emotional attachment (the flow of love) rather than a biological need to have sex.
You want to start your relationship with an unwavering self-respect that cannot be unwittingly compromised. Make sure your partner knows what is and what is not acceptable to you early on in the relationship and promise yourself that you are willing to leave the relationship if this is consistently abused without any visible signs of redemption. Obviously this goes both ways, so equally you want to respect your partner’s beliefs with this same degree of intent.
One thing you want to avoid early on is changing your core beliefs or actions purely to please your partner, such as being controlling or being controlled, or supplicating to your partner in a way that conflicts your integrity. An example of this is always going along with what your partner wants to do with regards to making decisions or planning activities. This is often out of fear that if you decide something that this potential long-term partner wouldn’t necessarily have chosen themselves, it might lead them towards resenting you… In fact it’s generally the opposite!
I’ve already made these mistakes; how do I rectify it before it’s too late?
If you have already realised that you have compromised some of your integrity with your partner, you want to slowly start introducing some assertiveness back into the relationship. This is something that you will have to slowly introduce over time, as springing a sudden big change in character on your partner will generate the feelings of confusion I mentioned in the first section.
Start making sure that you have at least as much say in the relationship as your partner does and don’t be afraid to stand up for yourself. Second to this is to let them know, phrased in a way without blame, when they do something that opposes your morals drastically.
In a follow up post, I will outline some actual practical steps that you can take to start your relationship in the best possible way.
Much love,
Sam
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The only thing I disagree with in this article is that you cannot change the boundaries of a relationship once it’s set on a certain track.
If you impose change what you will and won’t accept later on in the relationship, that’s fine, as long as your strong enough to do that. If you are a weak person and do it in a weak way, then you will fail. But the problem there is not that you didn’t started the relationship off on the wrong track, the problem is that you are a weak person.
I agree with you, though, that it’s absolutely paramount to have a line of what behaviours you will and won’t accept in a relationship.
I definitely agree with you. The only thing is that if someone does have a weak character, it’s not something they can really change overnight. That’s why I would suggest slowly introducing the characteristics of a strong-willed person into the relationship over time, as that person develops confidence in the situation. To be honest though, someone would only need to do this if they really feel they’re being overrun or controlled by their partner. Some people are actually happy in dominant relationships.
Thanks for your comment.
Sam
This was an especially informative article. I once heard a quote that said if you don’t want people to walk all over you then demand respect. Too many people are so worried about impressing the other person at the beginning of the relationship, they lose sight of themselves and then when they reach that comfort level, they go back to their true nature. The most important thing in going into a new relationship is to know yourself and not be afraid to speak up when you need to if the situation warrants it. Again, great post.
Hi Elena,
Great points! Respect is definitely important in asserting yourself in any social situation, especially in relationships. I’m not sure I would use the word “demand” in front of it as some people take that the wrong way and end up coming across as slightly arrogant but the point is still valid.
I definitely agree about knowing yourself and speaking your mind as a healthy equality in a relationship; great points!
Sam
There are some really great ideas here. Can’t wait to put some of these into action. Its really going to bring good vibrations where the vibrations should be.
Thanks Collene; keep in touch!