Surviving the Pressures of Others' Opinions
Friday November 28, 2008
If you saw your family yesterday, odds are they wanted to hear all about the wedding. And, odds are that they didn't just say, "That sounds wonderful," but instead were full of opinions about what you should do differently.
One of the hardest things about being engaged is learning to listen to other people's opinions without letting it stress you out or confuse your vision. Sometimes, these opinionated people will actually have good advice. But frequently, they're merely telling you things you "have" to do, when actually the opposite is true.
Having a strong vision of your own will help you stand up in the windstorm of opinion surrounding you. So make sure you and your future spouse have completed the Newly Engaged Planning Tool. It will help make sure you are both on the same page. You also might want to look at Wedding Themes and Styles for more ideas. And, then you'll need some help Dealing with the People Who Will Stress You Out During Wedding Planning. And if all else fails, take a little break from wedding planning. Yes, I told you it's okay to take a week off, and enjoy some stress-free time with your sweetheart! But don't take too long of a break, as doing so will only make you even more stressed-out later.
One of the hardest things about being engaged is learning to listen to other people's opinions without letting it stress you out or confuse your vision. Sometimes, these opinionated people will actually have good advice. But frequently, they're merely telling you things you "have" to do, when actually the opposite is true.
Having a strong vision of your own will help you stand up in the windstorm of opinion surrounding you. So make sure you and your future spouse have completed the Newly Engaged Planning Tool. It will help make sure you are both on the same page. You also might want to look at Wedding Themes and Styles for more ideas. And, then you'll need some help Dealing with the People Who Will Stress You Out During Wedding Planning. And if all else fails, take a little break from wedding planning. Yes, I told you it's okay to take a week off, and enjoy some stress-free time with your sweetheart! But don't take too long of a break, as doing so will only make you even more stressed-out later.
Comments
The opinions of others are frequently going to be a source of frustration, especially if there if family politics involved.
Like Nina said, setting goals and priorities is very important. Once established, people are less likely to try to sway you one direction or another. There will usually be someone vocal who will indicate displeasure one way or the other however, this is somewhat unavoidable. There is a reason why people run off to get married privately.
The one piece of advice that I’d give that rarely turns up on priority lists…having fun! If you enjoy yourselves, all the other blemishes to the day (there will be some) will seem insignificant.