If you’re just starting out in a new relationship, you know firsthand how hard it is to know if this new person is right for you. Even if a new partner feels like a good fit now, how will you feel in five years? Ten years? Long-term relationships are hard because they’re about the present as much as they are about the future.
Anyone who has experienced or studied romance and connection has wondered what special elements must come together to make a long-term relationship work. While every relationship is unique, here are five early signs that your relationship will last the test of time.
1) You Share Long-Term Relationship Goals
It’s a lot easier to nurture a healthy, loving relationship when you know where you’re going.
When we talk about long-term goals, we don’t mean personal desires like a vacation to see the northern lights or pursuing a new career. Long-term relationship goals are life choices that inform what your day-to-day looks and feels like.
When considering which long-term relationship goals matter the most, ask yourself the following questions:
- What kind of relationship do I want to be in? Monogamous? Polyamorous?
- Is marriage important to me? If so, would I want a religious ceremony or a civil one?
- Do I envision children in my future or would I want to be child-free?
- Am I happy where I currently live or do I want to move in the near future? Where would I see myself making my home?
If you and your new partner share similar long-term relationship goals, you’re much more likely to have a supportive relationship as you grow together as a couple.
2) You Support Each Other’s Personal Goals
Loving couples support each other’s futures.
What are personal goals that you would like to achieve in the next year, the next five years, the next thirty years? Find a new job? Backpack in Asia? Become a multi-millionaire?
What kinds of things would your partner like to achieve? Are their goals at odds with yours?
It’s important to talk with your partner about both your goals and theirs early on–and to check in on each other throughout your relationship. While some of your goals might be mutualistic (you want a large backyard and they want to live in the countryside) and can be achieved at the same time, most of them are probably different.
The idea with these conversations isn’t to get you and your partner to share or have identical goals; it’s to figure out whether you can support one another as you each pursue your own personal goals.
If your next goal is to run a marathon, your partner doesn’t have to be a fellow runner, but they should support you and the time that you spend training.
That could mean showing up to events, cooking healthy meals with you, or it could mean simply showing interest as you pursue your goal. If they’re unsupportive–they don’t care about your progress or make fun of your goal–it might be time to reevaluate your relationship.
3) You Share an Interest or Activity
Between working, pursuing goals, and completing chores, it can be hard to find quality time with your partner. If you both share an activity you enjoy, you’ll have more time to develop your shared love.
Your shared activity doesn’t have to be time-intensive or complex. Funnily enough, some of the healthiest couple’s activities are easy to fit in, even on a busy weekday. It’s more about sharing time, no matter what you’re doing or for how long you spend doing it. Some couples like to:
- Watch TV or play video games
- Exercise or go for a walk
- Go grocery shopping or cook dinner
- Visit friends or host an event
Find one thing you both like to do, and you’ll find that there’s always time left in the day to spend together and grow your love.
4) You Handle Each Other’ Flaws with Grace
It’s easy to love someone for their greatest traits; it’s a lot harder to love someone for their flaws.
An early sign of a strong relationship is to handle each other’s flaws with grace and kindness. Some couples have it easy: the more prickly aspects of themselves don’t seem to bother each other. Other couples have to work a bit more, finding supportive ways to work around each other’s pet peeves, quirks, and frustrations.
Imagine that your partner has a bad habit of eating all of your snacks. You have two choices: accept that your favorite kettle chips won’t make it through the week, or communicate with your partner to find a solution to the conflict. You could write your name on your favorite snacks, marking them as strictly off-limits. Alternatively, together you could agree to buy more snacks!
The important thing isn’t the solution itself, but the fact that the two of you work together to find one.
5) Your Social Circles Support the Relationship
Everyone has some kind of support network: parents, friends, siblings, coworkers, or a mix of the above. Whoever they are, these are the people who care about you the most. If they approve of your new relationship, that’s a strong sign that you’ve found the right person.
Your closest circle knows you best. While they don’t live in your shoes, they can provide a unique perspective on your life, on your needs, on your desires. If the ones who love you feel that your new partner fills the right roles in your life, their opinion is golden.
Don’t forget: your social circle is made of the people who you spend a lot of time with. If you want your circle to spend time with both you and your partner, your future is going to be bright if everyone gets along.
If your closest connections like your new partner, that’s an early sign that you’ve found a good one.
For All Else, Ask a Love Psychic
Whether you’re single, dating, in a committed relationship, or it’s complicated, a love psychic can be your soundboard. Love psychics are professional psychics who are gifted in the ways of the heart. They can help you find the right one, decide whether or not to dump your current partner, or simply listen to you as you describe where you’re at with the relationships in your life.
To speak to an online love psychic from anywhere, click the button below:
