Conflicts, challenges, disagreements, and difficulties: they are inevitable in every marriage. As a matter of fact, every marriage has at least ten irreconcilable differences. So how can we make them work FOR us? According to some impressive marital research, it’s not resolving our differences that make the difference it’s how we manage them that determines marital success! Learning how to manage differences respectfully is part of making a good marriage even better.
Over 35 years of marital research by Dr. John Gottman out of the University of Washington comes the prediction, with more than a 90 percent accuracy rate, of what’s going to happen to a relationship over a three-year period. In a national telephone survey the two issues couples most frequently reported arguing about were money and children; no big surprise, right?
There is a plethora of other common irreconcilable differences, including:
• In-Laws & Extended Family Involvement
• Balance Between Home & Work
• Communication Patterns
• Sexual Intimacy
• Personal Habits & Idiosyncrasies
• Sharing Household Responsibilities
• Outside Friendships
• Political Views
• Debt Difficulties
• Disciplining Children