Can better understand and accept yourself and others - Whether you re-read your journal or not, you can gain benefits from writing down your story, and your thoughts. You are writing about how you see and experience life. You can compare and explore times of your life - Awareness of past can teach and support your future.

Creates a good personal reminder - As you journal times of your life, if you are still writing about same things over and over, it can help support your idea of what is working in your life and what is not. You are creating a record, and with that record in hand it is easier to see patterns, changes, and shifts. You can always ask yourself, "What do I want to carry with me?"

Provides personal growth and freedom - Journaling can be a wonderful tool to help better understand yourself and world that surrounds you.

Becomes a treasured keepsake, a written scrapbook - A journal is a catalog of your memories. Over time, your memories become an irreplaceable treasure that can be looked at years from now, by you, or, if you wish, by others.

Records and tracks business, personal or financial information - There are many ways to benefit from journaling, because there are many ways to keep a journal. A business journal can track appointments, meetings, finances, or log data. A personal journal can be about dreams, family, health, diets, hobbies, travel, or any other topic you want to record and track.

Journals are great gifts for friends, family or to give yourself - You can give benefits of journaling to a friend, or to yourself. With benefits of journaling in mind, and insights and power it can give to someone else or to YOU, consider journaling. If you never journaled, consider starting. If you have journaled, but have quit, consider starting a journal again. Remember - write it down, get it out. There is power in expression of writing.

Doreene Clement, a cancer victor and author of The 5 Year Journal, is currently writing a new book, Blessed, about her life and her cancer experience. For more information www.the5yearjournal.com 480.423.8095 Copyright 2005 OMDC, LLC All Rights Reserved

WOMEN

DO

1.When you want more quality time with your man, make time you do have as positive as possible. 2.Trust and respect him. 3.Stop nagging. 4.Allow your partner time away from you without giving him third degree. 5.Appreciate little things he does for you and tell him so. 6.Make love creatively and often. Don’t be afraid to initiate lovemaking. 7.Honor any agreements you have made with him. 8.Support his goals and direction. 9.Ask for what you want! (Believe it or not, no matter how much he loves you, he really can’t read your mind.) 10.Accept his “No” gracefully, trusting that he would if he could.

DON’T

1.Go to bed angry with your partner. 2.Insist he always share his feelings with you. Talking about feelings is more what women need. 3.Attempt to converse with your partner during a good movie or sporting event. 4.Continue to “give” in what you perceive is a lopsided relationship when you are at a point of resentment. 5.Criticize him or put him down, especially things he does. 6.Scold your partner as if he were a child. 7.Use sex as a prize for good behavior or withholding of sex as punishment for “bad” behavior. 8.Compare him to a fictional character in a book, movie or soap drama and find him lacking. 9.Violate his privacy. 10.Try to change him. Appreciate man he is right now.

There is so much to learn about satisfying relationships that your parents never showed you. Please don’t become one of statistics of divorce or perhaps worse, stay in a miserable relationship to honor your marriage vows while having so many regrets about your life as time ticks away.

Take charge and take control of your life. Learn some new ways to improve relationship you are already in or to prepare yourself for being a better, improved partner for next person in your life. Contact Kim at 708-957-6047 or email at Kim@TheRelationshipCenter.biz about relationship coaching or take one many Teleclasses scheduled on Events Calendar at www.TheRelationshipCenter.biz. Don’t wait until it is too late.