In a successful relationship, couples work very hard to keep the spark alive. So how do they do that? By honest and open communication. It is amazing how many misunderstandings crop up between men and women. But then I guess if you browse the bookshelves of any bookstore you will see titles on this subject e.g. "Men are From Mars," "Why Women Don't Read Maps" etc.

All couples argue but it is how they do it that is important. You need to trust one another and that means feeling able to disagree without it turning into a personal attack. Try being open about how you are feeling. Don't get personal or blame the other person as that will not help you to resolve anything. A good argument can be fantastic for your relationship as it can strengthen the bond between you. Then there is always the making up. Wow!

Make time for each other. Instead of being at the bottom of each other's to do list, put it at the top. Your relationship affects the entire family. It must be nurtured in order for it to survive and prosper. Shared memories are what keep a couple together. Try playing games together. Shared interests such as golf, bridge, special outings are great for keeping the sparkle alive.

One game you could play is to taking turns for each person to make a request. They could ask to go for a walk, have a cup of tea/coffee in bed, take in a movie etc. The person being asked has the right to say no but the next day it will be their turn to be the asker, so they may want to remember that. These types of games help to build up the intimacy in a relationship. It also helps build a habit of asking for what you want rather than expecting your partner to guess.

A very important part of having a successful relationship is a very caring and intimate relationship, but unfortunately most believe it is all about sex. Having a great and intimate sex life is important, but it is perhaps even more important just to reach out and touch your partner affectionately every day. You can also just sit down and actually listen to what they have to say. This alone can move mountains in your relationship.

In order to be part of a successful couple, you first have to love yourself. Often we complain that we do not feel loved by our partners. But when we are asked what they need to do differently we can't answer. If you don't love yourself, you can't love anyone else properly. You need to work on your self esteem issues first before addressing anything you feel is wrong in your relationship.

You also cannot depend on your relationship alone to make you happy and give you a fulfilling life. You have a life of your own and if you live it fully, you will bring more joy and happiness to your partnership. Two people who have found happiness together and separately make the most successful bonds.

So to sum up, you don't get anything worth having in this life without a little work and that applies to successful relationships. Couples who work hard get to play hard!

In most cases, once you have been introduced to a person you are able to handle the date and know what you are doing. Oftentimes, the initial meeting is the hardest part of starting any relationship. If you know how situations are different and changed as you grow older and meet new people will help you to understand what you will be up against when you are trying to meet someone and date.

As women get older, they have a higher chance of meeting people due to the fact that there is a much higher woman to men ratio for older women. The older the woman, the more competition they are going to have. At the age of 50, the odds are increased even higher and the competition goes up again.

As for men, as they age they have a much lower rate due to an increase in suicide and death. So, there are less men looking to meet women as age increases. It is well known that most often women outlive men. This makes the ratio of men to women different and more sided toward women with increase in age.

People sometimes choose to let their friends set them up for a date. There can be good and bad things with this situation. If it is a successful relationship, it is wonderful. However, it is much more common that it does not work out and then friends can become offended or feel like they are in the middle. They may very well have the best intentions, but you need to do some serious thinking before you decide to accept this date and their help that they are offering.

There are ways to increase your odds of finding the right person to be in your life. Look closely at yourself. What picture are you giving to others? How do they see you? This is very important to look at and figure out. Look carefully at yourself to find out if there are changes that you need to make in order to be more presentable and appealing to potential mates. It is imperative to make yourself as desirable as possible if you want the best odds of finding a partner.

Are you the type of person that starts conversations? Most often, this is the best way to meet a new person. Take the initiative and be the first to talk to someone. Create an open door of potential for a new friend or possibly more. In some cases, you have to take the initiative yourself and stick your neck out. Take the chance and talk to people to make sure that you can take advantage of every possible opportunity to meet someone that could potentially turn into a relationship.

Starting a conversation or talking to people does not have to be a complex task. It is very simple. Introduce yourself. Tell them your name. Comment about their outfit or what they are wearing. Tell them about something that you witnessed them doing and what you thought about it. It is simply a matter of talking and starting a conversation. You just need to open the door.

Steps For Surviving A Break Up

Surviving a break up is a painful experience. You may feel rejected. You may be doubting your own self worth. You may not feel like getting out of bed in the morning. One thing that may help you is to know that most people have already gone about the process of surviving a break up and have come out stronger for it.

Here are some of the steps for surviving a break up.

First of all, allow yourself to mourn the end of the relationship. Your ex was almost like an appendage to you. You identified him or her as a part of you. You were two halves of a couple. Just as you would be lost if your right arm was cut off, losing a significant other can be painful.

So, spend some time grieving for the relationships end. It can actually be a healthy thing to do.

But at some point (hopefully soon), you have to move on. You will need to go through a process of being angry at your ex. He or she hurt you and you have every right to feel mad at them.

Here's a tip for surviving a break up in the anger stage. Write a long letter to your ex spilling out your guts about how you feel. Put every emotion, experience, and feeling into the letter. But don't mail it to them. Whatever you do, don't mail it. Instead, light a candle and burn it slowly over the flame. As your letter goes up in smoke, release your anger.

At this point, it is time to start rebuilding your life. Surviving a break up means getting back into the game. You should definitely lean on the support of friends and family during this difficult time. The people closest to you will understand that you are having trouble putting your life back together and they should offer you the support that you need to heal.

Also, you should look for activities that spark your interest. Perhaps there were things that your ex didn't like to do with you that you've missed. Renew your interest in these things. If you have had a lifelong desire to learn something, there's no time like after a break up to try. You will probably make new friends when you start a new activity and you might even meet a love interest who shares your passion.

At some point, you will want to start dating again. Don't expect your first few dates to turn into lifetime relationships. Just test the waters. Go out for coffee or a drink. Have fun and don't be too serious about these things.

Surviving a break up is always a painful process. But, you are capable of moving on with your life. Look at the end of the relationship as a chance for growth. Millions of people have survived a split with their ex and you will too.

Speed dating is becoming much more popular in our society today. People are relying on unconventional methods to meet someone that they can potentially spend the rest of their life with. If you have tried to find a date and have been unsuccessful, you may turn toward other methods. Often, this will include speed dating.

Speed dating is often an effective way to meet someone new. These are structured events. Most often there is little risk of negative effects. Everyone that is in attendance is there for the same reasons.

You are all looking for someone to date and spend time with. In other situations, such as bars, nightclubs, and various settings, there can be some confusion and differences in reasons for being at the location. This can create some embarrassment and emotional issues if you are pursuing someone and then find out that they have no interest whatsoever.

As with any form of dating, caution is needed when attending speed dating events. You want to be careful about the information that you are providing. Do not give out personal identifying information. You do not want to risk having someone that is not necessarily safe showing up at your house or stalking you.

This can create a safety concern and can even put you in danger. You can tell daters about yourself without providing your personal details. Tell them about your interests and what you are looking for in a potential mate.

Before you make a decision to attend a speed dating session, you need to make sure that you fully understand what is involved and how they work. The internet can be a great source for information. If you do a simple search for speed dating, you will find a wide variety of different sites that can explain the process to you.

There are often guidelines that you can follow and also tips to keep yourself safe. If you want to get the most out of a speed dating experience, you should do some research and investigation. By doing research on the internet, you can also find speed dating events in your area. You can get information on when the events will be hosted and the location. Information about any possibly themes or special circumstances will also be provided.

One benefit to speed dating is that there are often a wide range of age groups attending. There are also people from many different backgrounds and different personalities. Chances are that you can more than likely find the type of person that you are looking for at a speed dating event. This is not to say that there will be a long term relationship or that you will be spending the rest of your life with them. It simply means that there is potential to meet someone that is compatible with you and meets your expectations.

If you know what you want and if you take the time to search within yourself and find out what you desire, there are possibilities for a successful date that originates from a speed dating session. There are many people out there looking to meet someone just like you are. It is simply a matter of being in the right place at the right time.

Many single parents find it difficult to enter into the dating world. They have to juggle kids, work, and life in general. Then, there is the issue of finding someone to date that does not have a problem with the fact that they have kids. This can be an overwhelming task all on its own.

It can also be a reason for many single parents to avoid dating and to remain single. The prospect of being rejected due to the fact that they have kids or of trying to find a suitable partner that will accept their kids and that they can trust with their kids is too much for some people to try to deal with.

The first thing that a single parent needs to do when reentering into the singles world of dating; is to have an open mind. There are people that are willing to accept a partner that has kids. There are also other single parents in the world. Many of these parents are also looking to get back into the dating world. They will have the same fears and apprehensions that you are feeling. However, there is no reason that being a parent has to make you live the rest of your life being single.

It is a good idea to be upfront and honest from the very beginning. Do not try to hide the fact that you have children. This will save you a lot of time and hassle in the long run. There is nothing worse than developing feelings for someone and pursuing a relationship with them only to find out that they are not interested in kids. This can lead to many bad feelings in the end. It can also make a breakup hard and create animosity between both people. Honesty is the best policy.

Talk with potential partners about their views on children. There is no need wasting your time dating someone that has no intentions or desires to have kids. It will never work out in the end. A general, casual conversation can go a long way towards helping you to find the best person to enter into a relationship with.

This does not have to be a major conversation or a big deal. It is very casual and can just be added into your basic conversation. There is no reason that you have to make a huge ordeal out of the fact that you have kids. Oftentimes, the thing that scares someone off is a single parent that is entirely too pushy or tries to force a person into something that they may not be ready to commit to.

Another important point for single parents to keep in mind is that they should not lose hope. They are not doomed to failure. It is quite possible for single parents to meet people and to date and have meaningful relationships. Even if they have some unsuccessful dates or encounter people that are not interested in children, this should not discourage them from continuing on. The perfect person is out there just waiting to meet them.

The Senior Dating Group is one of a host of sites for people aged 50 or over to meet and date people of the same generation. The site started in the United Kingdom but has developed a U.S. branch as well. It provides you with a simple and secure way to meet other seniors. The Senior Dating Group is not unique, but it is representative of the type of mature dating sites now available.

They say that the site is for those of us who are young enough to want to meet new people and rediscover the joy of romance yet old enough to have the wisdom to grasp the modern technology to achieve it. The site is free to join on a limited basis but there is a fee for upgraded services.

You have to give your real name (no nicknames) and email address. Then you'll be asked for some other personal information which is not displayed to the public. You will also be asked for your zip code so that you can calculate your distance to other members.

The next step in the Senior Dating Group registration process is to choose your characteristics such as hair and eye color from a drop down menu.

The next screen presents you with a variety of interests and hobbies such as jazz music, gardening and watching sports. You can choose as many as you want.

On this screen, the Senior Dating Group also invites you to write up a description of yourself. Take this step seriously because it gives potential dates a picture of the real you that is not captured in simple check off boxes. For this service, the description is limited to 100 to 150 words.

Click add profile and you're ready to start dating.

The Senior Dating Group recommends adding a photo to your profile. That's because people with photos receive 20 times as many contacts from other members. Remember, the people who you eventually go out with will find out what you look like anyway, so putting your photo up at first is a good idea.

The free service allows you to receive messages from other members and to browse profiles. But, in order to send messages, you will need to upgrade to full membership which ranges from $19.95 for a month to $99.95 for a year.

As a full member you can send and receive private messages, use all of the search functions, and keep an online diary for recording your dating experience.

While there are many different online dating sites, the Senior Dating Group provides good value and a good selection of other older adults to choose from.

Do you have a local senior dating group? I bet you do! These groups are fast becoming the "must have" of any decent neighbourhood.

In the olden days, life was much simpler. Everyone knew everyone else so if you were looking for a relationship, you just put a discrete word out and lo and behold your knight on his shiny black horse would appear.

Times have moved on but there is no reason why your knight or princess cannot show up today albeit in a four wheel drive or similar vehicle. How do you find a match in this busy world of ours? Join a senior dating group!

Perhaps you are not looking for a long term partner but would love the chance to meet people to go on dates with. You might like to go to a film, theatre, picnic or perhaps even a holiday. Everyday activities that may be just a little more interesting if you had someone to share them with.

A senior dating service is ideal as the members are generally going to be a similar age and share similar beliefs both culturally and religiously. In some dating groups you can be very specific regarding the qualities of your ideal mate. For example, if you don't have children, you may not relish the thought of taking on someone else's large family.

Dating services for seniors are booming as more and more people are living longer and looking to enhance their golden years. They have reared their families and/or their careers are now completed. So now they have plenty of spare time and in a lot of cases, financial resources but just need someone else to share the moment with.

Older people have a different approach towards love and relationships. They have probably learned that physical beauty is only skin deep and while being attracted to the other person is very important, they do not need to resemble the latest fashion icon or supermodel. Hopefully both parties will have grown to accept their grey hair and wrinkles!

As we get older, compatibility and shared values become much more important. While older people can obviously still become intimate, they are less likely to be lead by their hormones as your average teenager. They will have already dealt with the issues caused by wanting kids or work/life balance. They do not face the same hurdles as younger people when it comes to finding a suitable partner.

But it is not all plain sailing. As we get older, we can become more set in our ways and less adaptable to change. After being alone, it can be difficult to open up your life to others. We may also have children or grandchildren who may believe that we should be spending the remainder of our days on the porch in the rocking chair.

But you will never know who you might meet or what experiences you could have until you try. So get those glad rags on and join your local senior dating group today.