Marriage Help: How to Get Your Man to Talk

  

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Here's some marriage help from The Oprah Magazine and the article How to Get Your Man to Open Up.  It's written from the experience of a reporter and suggests strategies they use to get people to talk.

1. Choose the Right Time -- Even if something has been bothering you, don't slam a man with it when he gets home from work, try a lazy Sunday afternoon (not during football season).
2. Pick the Right Place -- A fellow journalism teacher knew to meet interview subjects on their home turf (an athlete in a sports bar, for example) because it let them feel they were in control.  Now she has learned to butter up her husband for a big talk.  "Even though I prefer sushi," she said, "if we go to his favorite Tex-Mex place, he's going to be happier."  And more receptive.
3. Don't Be Argumentative -- No matter how outrageous his response, probe further, call bluffs, but don't fight.  Say "That's so interesting, I wouldn't have thought of it that way--please go on."  After a bit of prodding, he may start to make sense.
4. Selectively Ignore These Rules -- If your husband blows his Christmas bonus on a Harley-Davidson and skydiving lessons, it's finally appropriate to say, "What are you thinking?"

Try out these strategies for better success in getting your man to talk to you.