You have to earn your partner’s trust.
Relationships are journeys. They aren’t a mere destination. When you find yourself in a loving relationship with someone, you will soon grow to discover that you will never stop working for your love. You are going to constantly have to put in the effort to strengthen and develop your love as you go along. You are always going to want to find ways to get closer to one another because you should never grow contented. You should never be complacent or else you will risk losing your love. And part of not being complacent is constantly being on your toes; being able to do whatever you can to bridge whatever gaps exist between the two of you.
A huge aspect of getting closer to your partner is being able to be vulnerable to one another. Vulnerability is an often overlooked aspect of relationships. People tend to focus on passion, love, affection, intimacy, and intensity. But they then vulnerability gets overshadowed. In a relationship, you really have to allow yourselves to open up to one another. It’s normal for the both of you to have your fears and apprehensions when it comes to this. Of course, you would never want to willingly leave yourself susceptible to the abuse of another person. And so you try to keep yourself guarded to some extent. But you also have to understand that you are placing a ceiling on your love if you constantly keep your guards up. You have to gradually let your guard down to continually push the limits of your love for one another.
And you might be willing to be completely open to your partner but they might not necessarily be in the same place. Perhaps, they’re still a little apprehensive and hesitant. Maybe they don’t want to make themselves too vulnerable too quickly. That’s okay. Give them time. Be patient with them. But also, that doesn’t mean you should be relegated to a passive role in this. You can also do your part in the relationship to help your partner become more comfortable with becoming increasingly vulnerable to you. Be motivated by the fact that your relationship has a greater chance of just lasting all the way if you allow yourselves to get closer to one another; and you can only ever really become close to each other if you become vulnerable.
So how do you go about that exactly? Well, there are a few tips that you can follow to help speed and ease the process up for your partner. Read on until the end of this article to find out more.
1. Earn your partner’s trust.
Slowly earn your partner’s trust. It’s a different pace for everyone. Some are going to be able to trust you a lot faster than others. All you can really do at this point is to make sure that you never make them feel betrayed by entrusting themselves to you.
2. Own up to whenever you make a mistake and apologize.
There are few things in this life that are more vulnerable than actually being humble enough to apologize. If you know you are in the wrong, then own up to it and take responsibility for your actions.
3. Never use their own words against them.
Don’t blackmail them. If they open up to you about their deepest thoughts and feelings, then respect the fact that it was difficult for them to do so. Don’t compromise whatever trust they have for you by emotionally blackmailing them.
4. Time your humor correctly.
Humor is great in a relationship but it should be done in appropriate settings. Know when to take things seriously. If you just joke around with their feelings and emotions constantly, they will feel like you don’t really take them seriously.
5. Make yourself vulnerable and open yourself up.
They will respond well to vulnerability. When they see that you are comfortable with being vulnerable, they will grow to become comfortable with it as well.
6. Learn to take things at face value.
Not everything has to have some deeper meaning or a hidden agenda. You have to remember that. So if your partner is opening up to you about something, take it as an attempt to open up to you. It doesn’t have to mean that they have some ulterior motive.
7. Be patient, understanding, and forgiving.
They are going to fall and stumble a few times in your relationship. When that happens, show them that you understand. Don’t make them feel all too bad about it. Be respectful and patient with them. Acknowledge their humanity.
8. Express an actual interest in their lives.
Don’t be indifferent or cold. One of the best ways to get them to open up to you is if you take the initiative to be more inquisitive. Perhaps the reason they want to remain vulnerable is because they don’t think that you would be interested in whatever they have to say.
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