A very funny look at how men and women communicate...

The wife becomes frustrated because she feels her husband isn’t listening, while he feels like he’s doing his duty of being Mr. Fix-It. The husband feels like he’s being successful in his role, and she feels like he’s completely failing in the “job” of being a good communicator.

What can we take away from this?  

1. Appreciate both sides.

Wives, it really is a good thing when your husband wants to help. Try to look beyond your husband’s “fix it” mode and see what is motivating him – his love for you, and his trying to care for you.

Husbands, realize that while some things absolutely need to be fixed, very often your wife just needs for you to listen and even empathize with what is going on. Don’t become so zealous in offering solutions that you miss out on opportunities to care.
 
2. Watch out for your blind spot.

Sometimes, what we think we need isn’t what we need most. We might be so entrenched in our own situations that we might miss seeing something that is as obvious to our spouse as a nail in the forehead – that’s a blind spot.

3. Assume the best in your spouse.

The wife just assumed her husband wasn’t listening and simply fell into the Mr. Fix-It stereotype, which is why she was so resistant to his interruptions to point out the nail.

Overall, we interpret everything our spouse says and does through a filter. This filter can either be positive or negative – but it will go better for our marriage if it is positive.

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excerpt from Daly Focus by Jim Daly         click here to read full blog