Extending Courtesies

Another key to maintaining a loving relationship is to keep extending courtesies and manners to your partner. Sometimes when we’ve been with someone for a long time, we let our manners slide and let go of doing all those nice things that helped us first fall in love.

If you want to keep your love strong, extend these courtesies and niceties to the other person. It shows him or her that you still hold the same love, respect, and interest that you’ve always had. That means holding the door open, saying “please” and “thank you,” and all those other things we do in a polite society.

Just because you’ve known someone for a long time and become comfortable with them doesn’t mean you should stop saying and doing those things. It’s a sign of good manners and respect when you do those things, so if you stop – and especially if you still do them for other people – you’re sending your partner a subtle signal that you don’t respect him or her.