Making the decision to get engaged and eventually tie the knot shouldn’t be taken lightly. The stress of wedding planning alone can put a huge amount of pressure on couples, with even the strongest relationships tested to their limits.
While the ups and downs of wedding planning will be looked at fondly long after you marry, deciding whether you are ready to take that step and become engaged should be carefully considered. In this blog post, we reveal how to figure out whether you’re both on the same page.
You already have a full and happy life
Marriage is the cherry on top of the cake of an already successful relationship. If you’re happy with how things are now and lead a full, happy life together already then getting engaged could be for you.
Whether you define happiness as having a fulfilling home and work life or are just content with being able to laugh together when things are a little glum, a solid relationship is a great base for marriage.
If you and your partner work as a team, bring out the best in each other and are stronger together, putting a label on your commitment (and having a lot of fun while you do) makes perfect sense.
You’re happy to say “goodbye” to singledom
If you can’t imagine life without your significant other and you’re ready to wave bye to single life for good, getting engaged may be the right next step for you.
Marriage isn’t after all something that should be entered into with any doubts. If you’re sure, the prospect of ‘til death do us part won’t be daunting.
You overcome challenges openly, honestly and together
No relationship is perfect. It’s how you deal with the challenges that matters however. Working as a team and tackling life’s big and little dramas openly and honestly is the key to success, and will pave the way for an even more prosperous marriage.
You’re both moving at the same pace
There’s nothing worse than feeling like you’re ready to get engaged only to discover that your partner isn’t.
Understanding why your partner isn’t ready and why you are will help you both move in the right direction, whether engagement and marriage ends up being a part of the plan or not.
Communication with your partner is vital, but so too is self-reflection. Marriage and family therapist Ili Rivera Walter Ph.D. explains more about the importance of self-reflection when resolving your differences:
“Rejection often causes anxiety, and anxiety can lead to a need to hold on too tight to your partner… Self-reflect about your reasons for wanting to get engaged, as well as your reasons for wanting to get engaged (and married) to this person… Oftentimes, pursuing engagement, and marriage, can be influenced more by social pressure than by love for a partner.”
If you are both happy with the way and pace in which your relationship is progressing, you could be ready for the new level of commitment that engagement and marriage brings.
Just got engaged? Kick off your wedding planning in the most fabulous style by reading our handy guide.