Open and honest communication
seems to be a very popular topic in any discussion regarding successful
relationships. What I find very ironic is that open and honest communication is
almost completely absent in dating, or at least I have
not seen witnessed it regularly in my experience. I have observed that this absence of, or
resistance to communicating openly in the early phases of courtship is due to
the notion that having to do so somehow
diminishes the romanticism and spontaneity of dating. It’s almost as if it is
expected that the relationship will happen spontaneously and romantically without
either party having to openly communicate what they are thinking or feeling; and if communication is required too early on then the relationship must not be "meant to be.". I
feel this is largely due to the impact that Hollywood movies have had on our
perception of what romance and courtship is supposed to look and feel like.
Movies often times (and I recognize I am over-generalizing here) portray the
notion that romance, dating and courtship all happen spontaneously. A man and
woman find each other in a series of spontaneous, happenstance experiences and
before they even have time to discuss their relationship, they are kissing
under the star-light in a Gondola ride while an Italian crooner sings “That’s
amore.” Rarely do I see in romance movies two couples who openly and honestly communicate
their feelings and intentions during the courtship process.
So, what is “open and honest communication,” in the context
of dating? I’ll give an example from my life. A little while ago I was dating a
girl, and it was going well. We were starting to see each other fairly
regularly and it was clear that we had an interest in each other. A few weeks
into our courtship and after seeing each other a few times that week I called and asked
her out for Friday night. She let me know that she had to work until 9pm and had to get up early Saturday morning, but that she would like to see me still. I suggested an activity that would not keep her up too late but would allow us an opportunity to spend some time together, and she accepted the proposal gladly. However, the day before our date she
called me and told me that she was cancelling our date because she was going to
be getting off work late and had to work early in the morning. This excuse for
cancelling the date surprised me, because we had already discussed those concerns
when I asked her out. I was very much surprised that she would call and cancel
citing concerns that we had already addressed as the reason for doing so. I
could tell that something was off, even though she may have been telling me the
“truth” about why she was cancelling the date, I did not feel she was being
completely honest. Us human beings are masters at telling the truth,
dishonestly. Her lack of being forthright and honest with me, caused a minor
rift in our courtship, which in its infancy could have been disastrous.
Luckily, with this particular young lady, our courtship
continued after this date cancellation, and as our relationship became a
little more comfortable and sincere she confessed to me that the “real” reason
she cancelled the date that night was that she felt we were spending too much
time together. Even though we had a date planned for Friday night, we had ended up seeing each other on Thursday as well and she did not want to see me two nights in a row unless we were
exclusively dating. She felt it important to make sure that she was still
allowing herself other social opportunities until she was ready and certain
that she wanted an exclusive romantic relationship with me. Now, had she
expressed that to me when she cancelled the date I would have been completely understanding and supportive
of her cancelling the date on me. However, when she cancelled the date on me she
did not mention any of that, but used another excuse, which all though true,
was not open and honest.
Feeling comfortable with communicating our feelings, thoughts
and intentions is such a crucial component of all successful relationships, and
it seems that lack of effective communication can almost always be discovered
in failing relationships. If this is such a key component to successful,
healthy and happy relationships, why not institute this key principle
immediately in the dating process? I understand it may not be as romantic, and
we would all like everyone who we have a romantic interest in to be able to
read our minds and our subtle cues, but the reality is humans are not
mind-readers and require at least some, if not quite a bit, straight forward communication before we truly understand how another person thinks or feels. Ironically enough the spontaneous relationships so glamorized
in Hollywood movies are in reality by far the most scripted, planned, produced, rehearsed
and down-right NON-spontaneous relationships on the planet! Screen writers meticulously write out every word the characters will say, and create the scenes where the characters will meet, and create the characters who are meant for each other, and the actors rehearse their lines and timing again and again to make sure the romantic relationship is portrayed as though it was a 100% spontaneous!
Now, I understand that there is such a thing as
over-communication, and I understand that there is such a thing as two people
being able to get on the same page without having to discuss every nuance of
the relationship, but I do not feel over-communication destroys nearly as many
possible relationships or existing relationships as non-communication, lack of
communication, or dishonest communication. So if communication is so vital to
successful relationships, and dating is the pattern and preparation for those
relationships, why not start off day one of a new possible and hopeful
relationship by committing to be honest, and open with your feelings and
thoughts. Commit yourself to saying what is not just true, but what is also
honest and forthright. I am convinced that doing so will not only alleviate a
tremendous amount of frustration, guess-work, heartbreak and confusion in our
dating and relationship experiences, but will also allow for more opportunities
to attract a person into our life who is also a like communicator. Leave the
scripted relationships to Hollywood and communicate honestly and openly with
all whom you date, and interact.
