9 Ways to Improve Communication in Relationships

 

Communication in relationships plays a significant role in ensuring a happy and healthy relationship. For better communication in your relationship, you should learn how to listen more and talk less. The need to improve communication skills in a relationship can be overwhelming. The tips below can help improve connection through better communication.

The importance of communication in relationships cannot be underestimated. As you may know or have experienced, real connections are lost if there is no communication in relationships. However, what does healthy communication look like? How can you ensure that you communicate effectively in your relationship? Similarly, how can you improve communication if you are in a romantic relationship with someone you just met on Dating Ranking? Below are some tips on improving communication in relationships.

1. Identify Your Communication Styles

Before focusing on improving communication in relationships, it is important to understand that not everyone shares the same communication preferences. While some people like talking, others prefer touching or are more visual. Most communication issues in relationships occur if partners fail to understand each other’s style.

Effective communication in a relationship can be realized once you acknowledge this. For instance, you might want to convey some information, but you should know how to pass the information. Slight miscommunication can lead to misunderstandings and frustrations.

2. Ask Open-Ended Questions

Communication in a relationship isn’t just about informing each other about the days’ activities, what you had for lunch or dinner. You should leverage proper communication to dig deep and understand your partner well. However, this can be challenging, especially for those who aren’t used to discussing their feelings openly.

Fortunately, you can ask open-ended questions to avoid pressuring your partner. Asking open-ended questions instead of yes/no questions allows your partner to share any additional information about the question. Note that not everybody opens up quickly. Therefore, be patient with your partner as they break boundaries around their emotions.

Fortunately, you have several opportunities to ask these questions. For instance, you can ask them randomly when playing games at home, on date nights, picnics, or road trips.

3. Be Open and Honest

Dishonesty is among the top communication barriers in relationships. Since your share your heart desires with your partner, you shouldn’t be afraid of making your feelings and needs clear. While retreating and avoiding conflicts may seem safe and quite comfortable, it is not a good substitute for trust and won’t help you improve your communication.

Walking away or avoiding an argument is a temporary solution that should be done to achieve a brief cool-down period. If you avoid conflicts by not being open and honest, you will end up burying your emotions, which weakens your relationship.

4. Note the Non-Verbal Signs

Communication, either with friends or relationship partners, is more of how people say and not what they say. Non-verbal communication, such as tone of voice, eye contact, and body posture, communicates a lot. To communicate better, you should learn how to read these signs when conversing. Some non-verbal signs include:

• Folded arms may indicate that the person is closed off or defensive
• Avoiding eye contact implies that the person is not interested or ashamed of the topic of discussion
• A loud and aggressive tone means that the person is becoming emotionally involved
• Turning away from your position shows that the person isn’t interested

5. Be Present in the Conversation

Being present in time is an important aspect to improve communication in relationships and other encounters. When discussing issues with your partner, drop other engagements and dedicate your full attention to the conversation. This makes them feel that they have all your attention and number one priority. While it can be difficult to be fully present and mindful when angry or stressed, this shouldn’t be an excuse for poor communication in relationships.

6. Avoid Negative Patterns

If you truly understand your partner’s needs and preferred communication styles, anything that doesn’t align with their expectations might be a negative pattern. When conversing with your partner, be mindful of your pitch, volume, pace, and timbre. For instance, a highly pitched voice sounds defensive. A sentence ending in a high pitch also makes it sound like a question. Therefore, make a conscious effort to moderate these aspects of voice.

7. Listen Carefully

Most people think they are listening when talking with their partners. However, in reality, they are thinking about their next statements, especially when in an argument. Effective communication in a relationship cuts both ways. While it can be challenging, try to listen to your partners’ thoughts without interrupting or acting defensive. Hear them out and reflect back before you start speaking.

8. Take a Time Out

In some situations, heated tempers may make it difficult to continue with the discussion without escalating to an argument or fight. If you note that your partner is becoming angry or showing destructive patterns, consider taking a break to calm down. The break can mean a walk or stroll in your backyard before resuming the conversation some minutes or hours later. Good communication in a relationship also involves knowing when to take such breaks.

9. Ask for Help

Seeking external help is another good way of improving communication in relationships. If you find that you can’t stay respectful and constructive when handling a conflict, you can benefit from sessions with a relationship therapist. Family therapy can help you adopt new ways of resolving future conflicts and tips for better communication in relationships.

Bottom Line

Lack of communication in relationships can negatively affect your relationship. Unfortunately, most couples focus on the talking aspect of their relationship. Note that actions, too, speak loudly. Communicating with your significant other regularly through various means reminds the person of their importance in your life. While nobody is a perfect communicator, you can become a better communicator by trying these tips.

Which other hacks can improve communication in relationships? Please share them below.

How to achieve the above steps fast and easy.

Buy a copy of the Couples Intimacy game and you achieve most of the above in a done-for-you format that’s fun to play and opens up conversations that lead to improving your relationship. The key focus is on encouraging ‘Real Life Conversation’ questions and there is a mixture of trivia for ice-breakers, personal questions, relationship questions and physical intimacy topics that are all designed to get a couple talking, sharing and learning about each other. 

So there you have it! These are some of the best ways to improve communication in relationships and if it’s a couples game you are after to help get it started, then go grab a copy of our How Game Are You?™ Intimacy Edition game to help take your conversations and fun to a whole new level. View full details here or Buy Now for quick delivery direct or through Amazon (US), or Amazon (AU).

 

Authors bio:

Rebecca Shinn is a freelance writer and dating and relationship expert with a psychology degree. Her field of expertise is relationship, dating, and marriage. The important part of Rebecca’s practice is to help couples with communication skills, problem-solving skills, stress management, or financial skills. 

Rebecca started writing 2 years ago to inspire and help people to have a better dating life, healthy relationships, or find a way to keep a marriage strong for long years.

With all said above, Rebecca is proud to be a mother and a wife so she doesn’t only use her knowledge for helping others but keeping her family strong and happy.