Module 3: Celebrating Differences
Why is celebrating differences important?
All couples have areas where they differ in terms of their personalities or lifestyle. There is no way around this. Often it is these very differences that attracted you to your partner in the first place. However, some of these differences can lead to problems and conflicts, which is normal in any relationship.
A common mistake is when couples try to change aspects of their partner. The idea behind understanding differences is not to change each other, but to accept your differences through dialogue and understanding. Allowing yourself to accept your partner as they are, and together coming up with new, creative ways of handling your differences allows you to strengthen your relationship without having to change the core to who you are.
The point of this exercise is to discover some of the fundamental differences between you as a couple and understand where these differences come from. When there is more understanding of what lies behind each other’s personalities or lifestyle preferences, it becomes easier to navigate the relationship when conflicts arise.
What are you going to learn and accomplish?
- We are going to examine an area where you as individuals are different and could benefit from learning more about each other. This is an act of curiosity, not problem solving. The idea is to be curious about how your partner became who they are as well as how they would like to develop (what their goals are) in this particular area. You can then determine where your goals might overlap or possibly how you can bring them closer together.