Having The Right Partner Helps More Than Just Your Love Life

Committed relationships, like that of marriage, have lost their charm among Millennials. Many young women today regard marriage or a lifelong commitment to someone as restrictive, outdated, or distracting, instead choosing to focus on their careers or themselves personally. And while marriage definitely isn’t for everyone , I think the bad reputation that marriage has is a bit harsh. Getting married, of course, offers us a person to build and share a life with — someone who has pledged to be there through thick and thin. But even more than that, a lifelong commitment to someone undoubtedly benefits us in more areas than just our love life. We love seeing two people who’ve got each other’s backs and offer unconditional love. There’s a reason we can’t get enough of power couples like Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard , or George and Amal Clooney . We love seeing two people who’ve got each other’s backs, offer unconditional love, play for the same team, and don’t hold each other back. They provide us with a glimpse of a life in which we’ve found not just any partner, but the right partner for us, allowing us to see the clear benefits that such a marriage has for every aspect of their lives. Here are four ways having the right partner can benefit other areas of your life besides your love life: They’re So Much More Than Your Best Friend One of the best parts of being married to my husband is that we’re best friends — we can dream together, chit chat for hours, and be silly. But even more than that, he’s one of my support systems and biggest cheerleaders as I pursue a career in acting and writing, two career paths that are awfully daunting and nearly impossible to find success in. He’s one of my support systems and biggest cheerleaders as I pursue my career. Giving up the dream of landing a speaking role or throwing away my latest draft can be tempting, and I’ve questioned countless times if it’s time to just throw in the towel. Being married to someone who believes in me, makes an effort to understand my struggles, and does everything he can to support me is a huge part of what’s actually helped and inspired me to continue to pursue a demanding career. They’ll Challenge You To Grow Being married has challenged me to grow in more ways than I can count: to be less selfish, how to have healthy disagreements, how to forgive. And it’s not a walk in the park, because we’re naturally extremely self-centered beings who think we’re always right and don’t feel like being forgiving. Though some of us might have an easier time expressing compassion and being thoughtful, we still experience everything in life through our lens, and no one else’s. We have to think about how our words and decisions will affect this person. Being in a committed relationship changes that because we have to take another person into account when making decisions, and think about how our words and decisions will affect this person. This doesn’t always sound fun, but it actually helps make you a better friend, employee, and colleague because having to do that all the time with a spouse makes it second nature. They Can Help You Discover New Parts of Yourself We all sort of grow up in a bubble. I know I did, even though I grew up in Los Angeles, surrounded by people from all over the world. I was very much a West Coast girl, thought I’d live over there forever, had zero experience with tiny towns where all the neighbors knew each other and waved, knew nothing about nature (because no, Runyon doesn’t count), and only had friends with similar upbringings. I’ve gotten over my fear of dogs and tried out books I wouldn’t have read three years ago. But being married opened up that bubble completely. I’ve discovered how much I love tiny, friendly towns, challenging hikes, the wide open, wild space of Colorado (my husband’s home state), and living on the East Coast. I’ve gotten over my longtime fear of dogs, found that I enjoy video games, and tried out books I wouldn’t have read three years ago. Joining two separate yet whole lives opens up the opportunity to embrace parts of ourselves we didn’t know existed. They’ll Be Your Partner in Everything One of the biggest fears I used to have about marriage was that my spouse and I would essentially live like two ships passing in the night. I worried that we’d have completely different goals, he wouldn’t understand my passions, or we would have been happier living our lives separately. I worried that we’d have completely different goals, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. But when we find the right person, this couldn’t be further from the truth. Like with any power couple ( Emily Blunt and John Krasinski making movies together, anyone?), the right partner will be involved in more than just our love life; they’ll likely become our partner in everything, whether embarking on a new business venture or trying out a new hobby. Closing Thoughts Finding the right partner for us is about so much more than love; it’s about finding the person who can inspire us to grow, go after our dreams, and add something to our life that we wouldn’t have found otherwise.