At the start of every dating seminar I speak at, I ask the attendees what their ultimate goal is with regards to dating and relationships.

By far the most common answer is to end up with “the one”… that one special person that matches all of their core values and surpasses everything else they look for in a romantic partner.

Whilst this is a lovely ideal in theory, how do you know when you have definitely found the right person? If you journey through relationships sequentially like the majority of people do, how do you know that there isn’t someone better suited to you out there each time?

This article will discuss whether there is indeed one special person for everyone, as well as provide some food for thought on how to know exactly what you are looking for in the world of love… [Continue reading this post...]

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This entry was posted on Thursday, January 26th, 2012 at 5:49 pm by Samuel McCrohan and is filed under Relationships.
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There are several stages in a relationship where the commitment level is stepped up a notch and a melee of new tests arise… moving in with your partner is one of those.

Heidi and I have been living together for quite a while now and although we are still just as happy in our relationship as we have always been, there are several new lessons we have learnt from being in each other’s company all the time.

This article will discuss some of those insights and share some tips about how to adapt your relationship accordingly once you are living together.

Please feel free to share your experiences, thoughts and insights in the comments section once you have finished reading and I will respond as soon as possible… [Continue reading this post...]

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This entry was posted on Thursday, November 3rd, 2011 at 5:37 pm by Samuel McCrohan and is filed under Relationships.
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It is easy to assume that your relationship will last forever. The rapturous emotions and validation one gets from sharing their affection exclusively with another often eclipses any negatives there might be. Without the direct comparison of other similarly fulfilling relationships, it is easy for a gradual decline to go unnoticed.

Whilst this article focuses on determining how well your partner compliments your deepest relationship desires, it can also be read as a self-evaluation. If you want to be with the perfect partner for you, it goes without saying that you should be the perfect partner in return! It is only once you have both of these factors in place that you have the ingredients for the perfect relationship… [Continue reading this post...]

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This entry was posted on Thursday, May 5th, 2011 at 7:42 pm by Samuel McCrohan and is filed under Relationships.
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Learning to deal with arguments and come out the other side with minimal negativity or damage is a key aspect in the conflict solving stage of a relationship.

One step further is preventing arguments from occurring in the first place! It is an advanced skill for couples to achieve but one that ultimately leads to the most continually positive and fulfilling relationships.

This article will discuss some useful methods for preventing arguments in a relationship before they even get started… [Continue reading this post...]

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This entry was posted on Thursday, March 17th, 2011 at 5:58 pm by Samuel McCrohan and is filed under Relationships.
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Couples come to me with all sorts of relationship issues but they can always be sorted into two categories: prevention or improvement!

Some examples of issues that would fall under the prevention category are solving excessive arguments, eliminating any unnecessary jealousy or dealing with frustration towards a romantic partner’s changeable behaviour.

Some common examples that fall under the improvement category are couples looking for more intimacy, understanding or romance in their relationship.

The thing with any of the above is that the people coming to me for relationship advice are not always concise about their particular issue and how it developed. It is so easy to settle into a relationship and become blissfully unaware of the value of continually working on and enriching certain aspects of it, until things start to go downhill that is.

Below is an exercise that will start to highlight any areas of your relationship that might require some extra effort or attention. Even if you currently feel perfectly happy in your relationship, you will be surprised at how easy it is to further enrich it still.

As a result of doing this exercise, you are also likely to reveal exactly how fulfilling your relationship and indeed your partner really is for you… [Continue reading this post...]

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 11th, 2011 at 12:07 pm by Samuel McCrohan and is filed under Relationships.
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Only a small proportion of people remain with their first girlfriend or boyfriend for life, so dealing with breakups is an inevitable consequence of having an active dating life.

A breakup can occasionally be a completely mutual decision (and they are ultimately the least emotionally damaging for both parties) but more often than not, there is one person a lot more emotional affected by a breakup. That person will usually be the one on the receiving end of the news.

There are two perspectives that this article will focus on. First we shall deal with breakups from the point of view of the recipient: the person in the relationship who does not necessarily want it to end (often referred to colloquially and somewhat abrasively as the “dumpee”). I will then address breakups from the point of view of the instigator (the person initiating the breakup) before finishing with advice suitable for both… [Continue reading this post...]

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This entry was posted on Saturday, November 27th, 2010 at 1:16 pm by Samuel McCrohan and is filed under Relationships.
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Every relationship is unique and what works for one couple does not necessarily replicate for every other couple out there!

Having now worked with hundreds of romantic couples from all sorts of backgrounds, beliefs and experience levels, I’ve started to discover more and more trends that DO span across a variety of different relationships and more specifically, how those relationships develop over time.

In this article, I am going to present to you a simplified version of this relationship development in the form of an illustrated time line. It portrays two of the core elements behind every happy and fulfilling long-term relationship… I call it The Happy Relationship Time Line! [Continue reading this post...]

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This entry was posted on Saturday, October 30th, 2010 at 12:58 pm by Samuel McCrohan and is filed under Relationships.
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Criticism is defined as the act of passing judgement on both the merits and faults of something someone does, although in a relationship it is associated predominantly with negative feedback:

“You never do…”

“That’s typical of you…”

“You’re useless at…”

Criticism is something that is rife in all areas of life, from family to business, but it is in a long-term relationship where criticism can feel particularly hurtful and can easily develop into something far more sinister… [Continue reading this post...]

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 21st, 2010 at 6:47 pm by Samuel McCrohan and is filed under Relationships.
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Ask any relationship expert what they believe the foundation to a lasting relationship is and chances are that “trust” will appear near the top of the list.

Second to that, the most popular article on this website by some margin is one I wrote last year titled, ‘Dealing with your girlfriend getting hit on’. The comments section of that article currently features over 100 in-depth questions and answers and the recurring topic throughout is that of ‘trust in a relationship’.

This article aims to condense some of the advice given in response to those real-life relationship concerns, as well as give some further insights as to why trust can become such a big issue in a relationship and how you can learn to be at peace with it at all times… [Continue reading this post...]

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This entry was posted on Thursday, August 12th, 2010 at 6:04 pm by Samuel McCrohan and is filed under Relationships.
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It is widely recognisable that there are two distinct stages during the first few years of a new relationship.

The first of these stages is the attraction, lust and romance stage, which develops from when a couple first start dating and can last anywhere from a few months to several years. This continues whilst a couple discover each other fully and build intimate rapport together.

The second of these stages is the commitment, management and awareness stage, which continues thereafter. This stage usually develops around the time there is a prominent gesture of commitment, such as deciding to live together, or simply the period where a couple become deeply and emotionally close to one another.

The power shifts that develop across these two stages are unavoidable but the degree to which we let a power struggle affect a relationship can most certainly be handled… [Continue reading this post...]

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This entry was posted on Friday, June 11th, 2010 at 11:01 am by Samuel McCrohan and is filed under Relationships.
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