01
Be interested, not just invested
A good friend is curious about you — not just what you do for them, but who you are. Ask your partner about their day, their thoughts, their small pleasures and frustrations. Show interest in their inner life.
Connection
How to Maintain a Genuine Friendship with Your Partner
Research by the Gottman Institute suggests that the quality of a couple's friendship is the single most important factor in relationship happiness. Romantic love can wax and wane — but partners who genuinely like each other have a foundation that sustains them through anything.
02
Laugh together regularly
Shared humor is one of the strongest friendship bonds. Don't let laughter become a casualty of busy adult life. Watch something funny, share inside jokes, be playful with each other. Couples who laugh together stay together.
03
Respect each other
You wouldn't speak to a good friend with contempt or dismiss their feelings as silly. Apply the same standard to your partner. The way you speak to your partner — especially in difficult moments — either builds or erodes the friendship underneath the romance.
04
Do things you genuinely enjoy together
Friendship is built around shared experience. Find activities you both genuinely enjoy — not activities one person tolerates. Having things you look forward to doing together prevents the relationship from becoming purely transactional.
05
Show up for the small stuff
A good friend celebrates your wins, acknowledges your bad days, and shows up when things are hard. Do this for your partner. Notice when they're excited about something and match that energy. Acknowledge when they've had a rough day.