One of the hardest parts of meeting someone new, especially someone who has captured your romantic interest, is finding ways to break the ice without sounding cheesy.  Part of the reason this is difficult is because some really useful questions to ask are asked so often that they almost become parodies… things like “So, what do you do for a living?” or “What do you like to do for fun?” The solution is to come [...]

Communication is the act of conveying a message from the sender to the recipient.  Effective communication is when the message received is the message that was sent, without any misinterpretation.  And all effective communication has one thing in common – shared experiences. I'm not talking about shared experiences as in an experience that you went through together, although that certainly qualifies… I'm talking about experiences that you both went through, like both going through school, [...]

There is a really simple, foolproof way to not care what others think.  It's not difficult, it doesn't take long, and everyone is capable of doing it.  It only takes one sentence to tell you this amazing secret.  I'm going to go about this all wrong and give you the answer right up front, and hope that you stick around afterwards for the explanation.  It'll be worth it, I promise.  The foolproof way to not [...]

  Do you want to have a fantastic relationship?  Do you know how to tell if a relationship has what it takes to be great instead of somewhere between "okay" and "good enough"? Relationships can seem like tricky things, but the basics really aren't that complex.  There are certain things that any really good, great, or fantastic relationship will have.  Some lesser relationships will still have some of these things, but often only on one [...]

What is the real you?  What is it that makes up the true you, what belongs to you and only you?  What do you get when you see past the surface, past the anger and fear, "love" and betrayal, hurt, pain, and even agony?  The real you… the deep you, the you that is beyond what the surface you can even imagine. When you are born, you have no concept of your "self".  As you [...]

Would you like to both appear, and actually be, smarter?  There are many techniques out there that can help you to learn this or that easier, or improve your memory, but it's not quite so common to find techniques that allow you to increase your general ability to acquire and apply knowledge across the board. If you're looking for such a way, or weren't particularly looking, but you're interested now that I caught your attention, [...]

There is nothing like falling in love.  Your whole self, body, heart, and mind, yearns for the person you are in love with.  You want to be with them all the time, you wonder what they're doing or what they're thinking when you are not around them, and the whole world just seems like a better place.  There's only one problem. You can't, and won't, be falling in love forever.  At some point, if you [...]

Women always seem to have a hard time recognizing when a man is an alligator (or gator, for short) looking for easy prey.  A gator is a man that tricks women into starting or continuing a relationship.  This is most often, from what I have seen, because he has more than one woman (or is looking for more than one… he may not show many of these signs if you're the only one he has [...]

What is the measure of a man?  What does it mean to be a “good man”?  What is it that makes one man a good man, respected by all who know him, while another is admired but not necessarily respected, and yet another is looked upon as unworthy of the title of “man” at all? It is very common to use surface traits, traits that are easily visible from a distance, to judge a man.  [...]

One of the most important things in any relationship is to show the other person that they are special to you, worthy of your time, effort, and attention.  This can be done with huge, lavish gestures, like buying them a car, but in the long run, the little things that you do on a regular basis make more of a difference. There are obviously a vast number of small things that you can do for [...]