What are your plans for Valentine’s Day?
Is it a time of the year you enjoy or dread?
Today, I am writing a post with a difference.
To celebrate Valentine’s Day, I am bringing you some of the best blog posts from around the blogosphere, including some of my own previous articles.
Valentine’s Day is a fun and loving day for many people and there are so many wonderful blog posts out there about all aspects of relationships.
I have searched high and wide and these articles offer some of the best wisdom you can get, no matter where you are in your relationship.
I am proud to know a lot of these prominent bloggers as friends and it is a privilege for me to share their work with you.
Do take your time reading through these articles, bookmark this post and come back to it again and again, as you create a wonderful and happy relationship.
Note my emphasis on “happy” rather than “perfect”!
My fondest wish is that may you all find happiness in yourself and in your relationship, no matter what stage you are at – perhaps single and having a ball, in a blissful union or recovering from a broken heart.
There is much age-old wisdom in these 40 posts, so grab a coffee, sit back and come with me on a journey of love and relationships.
1. The Real Meaning of Valentine’s Day
Valentine’s Day is a celebration of love and it is an opportunity for us to truly reconnect with the real meaning of this day.
It is about LOVE, sharing and giving.
Love is the most amazing thing in our lives.
It is what makes us human, what makes life worth living.
Nothing else truly matters. The size of our homes, bank balances, the beauty of our partner, the speed of our car – all those things pale into insignificance when we face the splendour of what it is that makes us tick.
“Love does not make the world go around – it simply makes the ride worthwhile”.
Love is much greater than what we feel romantically.
It is what makes us sing and dance, and it makes us human.
There are so many simple things we can all do on a daily basis to bring more love into our lives.
Together we can all make this an even better and more beautiful world than it already is. Let us use the occasion of Valentine’s Day for us all to become human again together, and manifest even more love in our already magnificent world.
Always remember all the positive aspects of love.
2. 8 Ways to Bring More Love into the World – Before it’s too late
2. Avoid the Commercialism of Valentine’s Day
Love is NOT the highly commercialised circus we see on Valentine’s Day.
It is much deeper and much more profound than sending someone a dozen roses at hugely inflated prices.
It is much more than candlelit dinners and fancy chocolates.
It seems we are madly clamouring for this special day of love as if all it takes to prove and validate our love is just one day of being nice to our partner.
It is amusing to see so many people rushing around to prove their true love for that “special” person in their life.
But what happens when the roses have died and the chocolates have all been gobbled up?
This commercialism has gone so far that people are even made to feel inadequate if they are on their own on Valentine’s Day.
Here is a great post from my friend and blogging mentor Leo Babauta about how you can get away from the commercial aspect and be romantic on the cheap.
3. Ways to be romantic on the cheap
Being cheap does not mean being a cheapskate, just frugal and sensible!
At the same time, why limit yourself to having some fun for just one day of the year?
4. How to make it a fun Valentine’s Day everyday
3. Give of Yourself to Others
This time of the year, we are bombarded with all sorts of commercial pressure to go out and spend a fortune to show the true merit of our love.
Rather than just focussing on what fancy gift you can give to your loved one, or how elaborately you can celebrate the day, how about focussing on what you can actually give of yourselves?
Even if you are single, it is time to give more of yourself to others.
It is really not about us anymore – it is about others and what we can do for others.
5. Valentine’s Day is a time for selfless giving
I challenge you not to be moved by the superb story – “The Valentine” – about a little boy who wrote out Valentine cards for all his school friends.
4. Love Your Life and Create a Great Relationship with Yourself
The key to having a great relationship and indeed a great life is to have a healthy self-image and to love yourself in a healthy way. So just how do you love yourself?
6. How to Love Yourself – the Master Key for Your Life
One of the keys to a wonderful relationship is to love your own life. And here are 77 reasons to love your life from my new blogging friend Dragos Roua.
7. 77 Reasons to love your life
Just how much love do you share with your loved ones?
8. Share Your Love with Your Loved Ones Everyday
Ultimately, remember that you have to be special to find the special one!
9. 14 Key Strategies To Help You Become Special Too and Find the Special One
5. Enjoy the Single Life
Believe it or not it is possible to be happy even if you are single.
Ignore all the media hype at this time of the year and simply go and have a ball!
10. Stop being an approval seeking machine!
11. How to be single and enjoy every second
12. How to be single and happy
And you can plan how to get out of singledom!
13. 14 Key Strategies to become highly irresistible and a great catch
6. Get Ready for the Special One
Finding “the one” seems to take up so much of our energy – and yet just how well do we prepare ourselves?
One of the keys is to let go of the past and heal yourself – literally mend a broken heart.
14. How to mend a broken heart
Of course you will not meet someone by staying at home. So you must get yourself out there, which could be a challenge if you are shy or introverted.
15. The introverts guide to people
16. How to finally overcome shyness
The last thing you would want is to feel lonely or isolated. Just know that there are other people at a similar life stage as you who would be delighted to connect with you.
17. How to escape loneliness – 8 easy ways to deal with loneliness
Find out why Love is all that matters in any relationship, special or not.
18. Why Love is all that Matters
And once you are out there meeting people, you want to be as attractive as possible
19. 9 science-backed ways to appear more attractrive
7. Find the Special One
So one day you want to find “the special one”. But remember that “special” is what’s special to you – for someone else, your special person could be a ogre:-)
Do you believe in just relying on the “law of attraction” to find the one or are you willing and ready to put in some work?!
20. The law of attraction versus science
Regardless of what you believe, you really do need to get out there and meet people.
21. Quit the dating apps and get out there!
If you are a man, it would be helpful to know a bit more about the qualities women want in their men.
22. 12 qualities women want in their men
This article will also help women get clearer about the more important things to look for in a prospective partner, beyond the flashiness. At the same time, don’t just wait for your soulmate – create a soulmate relationship.
23. Why you should create a soulmate relationship rather than waiting for your soulmate!
When you meet someone you really like, how do you know whether it’s true love or just infatuation?
24. True love or Infatuation – what’s the Difference? And then of course when you meet someone, you want to know all about the perfect kiss.
25. 7 tips for the perfect kiss
8. Make your Relationship the Best Possible
One of the foundations of all successful and happy relationships is your communication and listening skills. It is time time to horn these skills.
26. Improve your relationship – listen up!
It is inevitable that all relationships will have their ups and downs. So it’s good to know how to deal with really difficult people without becoming one yourself!
27. 10 Ways to Deal with Really Difficult People without Becoming One Yourself
It’s okay to love yourself, but do so without becoming full of yourself.
28. Love yourself without becoming full of yourself.
Be wary too of the simple ways through which you could kill your romance.
29. 10 ways we hurt our romantic relationships
If nothing else, just remember that some how you attracted this “douchebag” person into your throgh youir vibration!
30. What comes first – the douchebag or the vibration that attracted him?
Quite often, the secret is to be aware of your expectations of your partner and then releasing them. Create love rather than just falling in love
31. Don’t fall in love – create love instead!
Maybe it is time for you to turn a boring relationship into a party of love?
32. 10 ways to turn a boring relationship into a party of love But if your relationship is in real trouble and dying then there are just 2 steps you need to taketo revitalise it.
33. The 2 most important steps to revitalise your relationship from death
Finally, you may just want to revisit all the boundaries in your life
34. Setting your boundaries and your house rules
9. Have Fun in Your Relationship
Being in a relationship is not all about just holding hands – hopefully you will do a lot more! Do however control yourself:-)
35. 5 things to do to sustain passion and desire
And there is always room for improvisation and improvement.
36. 13 ways to be a better lover
10. Marriage, Commitment and Small Acts of Kindness
So you have now met someone and you are falling or fallen in love.
What next?
Well how about just letting go?
Why not just let go, make it up as you go along and give love a chance to work?
37. 9 rules to follow to make a relationship actually work
And then one day prepare for committment and marriage
38. Committment forever here and now
Then one day who knows what amazing children you’ll create!
39. Remember the power of positive parenting and the value of discipline
At the end of the day, remember never to take life too seriously and your marriage too lightly.
40. Why Would You Ever Want to Grow Up Anyway?
What we all have to remember is that romantic love may bring you and your partner together, but it is the tiny day to day acts of kindness which will allow your relationship to flourish and grow.
And most importantly, always remember to be child-like!
Why would you ever want to grow up anyway?
“Dating is about grand romantic gestures that mean little over the long term. Marriage is about small acts of kindness that bond you over a lifetime”. – Lori Gottlieb, author of “Marry Him: The Case for Settling for Mr. Good Enough”
Always remember that there is enough love in each of our hearts to heal the world, and not just our own personal relationship.
We have simply forgotten this as we all strive to get bigger, better and to get somewhere. But usually when we get there and have these things, we find forlorn emptiness.
“Love doesn’t leave you but you leave love”
So from this Valentine’s day onwards, focus on creating the best relationship you can, not only with yourself, but also with your partner.
If you have not yet found the “love of your life”, then you have all the tools and wisdom here in this article to help you do just that.
My desire and my fondest wish is that this Valentine’s day, you find your own love, within you and around you.
And after that, I urge you to spread this love.
Love is all that Matters
This book is a clarion call to bring more love into the world through simple yet powerful daily rituals.
The book is available on Amazon.
There are 9 chapters in this book and each short chapter concludes with a daily exercise – carry out these simple exercises and watch in wonder as your life magically transforms into a life filled with love, kindness and understanding.
And if you enjoyed the book or if you found it useful, I’d be very grateful if you’d post a positive review on Amazon. Your support really does matter and it truly does make a difference – I do read all your reviews so I can get your feedback.
Thank you.
I am honored to be on the list, Arvind! Thanks!
k
Thank YOU Kaushik for yoru great article about how to mend a broken heart – I found your article personally very useful:-)
That’s a wonderful list Arvind and you did a great job of turning a boring everyday list into a real story. I have already found a few interesting articles that I haven’t read before and I am sure that as I get back to this list II’ll find even more! Thanks for mentioning my article by the way 😉
Thanks Anastasiya – I really enjoyed putting this post together as I learnt so much whilst doing so.
And thanks for your great post about enjoying Valentine’s Day even if you are single – there are a lot of people out there is this category who would have enjoyed your guidance.
I like the way you put this list together, Arvind – kind of a step-by-step guide, rather than just a long string of articles. Thanks for putting in the work (and for linking to me in the process)!
Jeffrey, your guide for introverts will come in handy for a lot of people out there who are holding themselves back from getting out there. Thanks.
This is such a great list Arvind, thanks for putting it all together! Headed to read through the posts I really liked.
You are most welcome Lana – I was surprised there wasn’t already a list like this out there. But no w there is – and I hope a lot of people find it useful.
Thank you so much for mentioning my post!! I really appreciate it. Happy Valentine’s Day! 🙂
Happy Valentine’s Day to you to Dani!
I really enjoyed your article about the 9 positive aspects of love – and I am sure a lot of people will really love your summary of what love is:-
“[Love is] not a single kind of positivity. It’s all of the above, encompassing joy, gratitude, serenity, interest, hope, pride, amusement, inspiration, and awe… In the early stages of a relationship…you’re deeply interested in anything and everything this new person says and does. You share amusements and laugh together…As your relationship builds and perhaps surpasses your expectations, it brings great joy. You begin to share your hopes and dreams for the future together. As the relationship becomes more solid, you sink back into the serenity that comes from the security of mutual love. You’re grateful for the joys your loved beloved brings into your life, as proud as their achievements as you are of your own, inspired by their good qualities, and perhaps in awe that the forces of the universe that brought you two together.”
Thanks Dani for all the positivity and your inspiration.
Thank you SO much Arvind for creating such a lovely list and a wonderful resource! I especially appreciate that its focus is on the most important love relationship we’ll ever have – the one with ourselves! An alternate title for #9 on the list could be “Write a Letter to the Love of Your Life – YOU!” 😉 Thank you again, Arvind, for shining your light in the world!
Stacey, thanks for your suggestion – I have changed it!
All too often on Valentine’s Day, people forget that the emphasis should be on love and not all the commercial aspects of the occasion. Let’s all strive to bring the focus back on love.
Arvind, great collection and something for those cold days with a lover by your side. I feel deeply honored to be on that list. Keep it up man.
Patrick, you are most welcome – thanks for your excellent post.
I would like to think this would be a great collection even for the not so cold days! In others words, there is enough wisdom here from you and others, for any weather and anywhere in the world.
And also for those people who do not currently have a lover by their side:-)
Hi Arvind,
This the the PERFECT Valentine’s Day post. Thanks for doing the work for all of us! If we follow all of this advice, the world would definitely be a better place.
I’m so honored that you included one of my posts.
Happy Valentine’s Day to you – and everyone!!
Gail, you are most welcome!
Now let’s hope a lot of people follow this advice – and make the world a better place.
Arvind – a great way to digest the deeper meaning of Valentine’s Day. I really enjoyed browsing these articles. My real Valentine’s Day was a great lesson – no fancy presents, no meal out. Just a quiet day with someone special doing simple things and appreciating the world. Bliss.
Thanks for the great post and hard work,
Phil
Phil, welcome to my blog and for your kind words.
The simple things in life are the best, whether it is Valentine’s day or not.
As you say, bliss:-)
Arvind, I’m once again late for the party but I lvoe this post and RT’d it. Thank you for linking to me. xo
No worries Belinda, there is always a party my blog:-)
And you are most welcome, thanks for your great article.
I’m fortunate to discover your website. It is helping me to build a right attitude towards all aspects of life. I feel that a married persons can be happy if they have the control switch of their happiness in their hands,but not in the hands of their life partner or their children or any other loved ones!
Thanks Vijayalakshmi for your kind words – and welcome to my blog:-)
As you say, you are always in control of your own happiness.
There’s a whole lotta love here Arvind and you bring it. May your heart be filled with love over Valentine’s and every day to come. Life begins at 40 and so does great love with these 40 wonderful posts.
Thanks John!
Life actually begins the day you choose to live each day to the fullest and begin to appreciate what’s already in your life.
Happy Valenine’s day today and everyday:-)
Arvind, this is such an epic round up of fabulous links and information. I am thrilled to think I’ve read many of the posts you’ve mentioned! But I’ve got miles to go before I sleep, my friend! So much to read! And enjoy!
Tomorrow marks fifteen years of being married to the most wonderful man on earth 😀
Thank you very much! This post is a BIG treat!
Hugs!
Vidya
Vidya, congratulations re your 15th wedding anniversary! You must write a blot post about your secrets of a successful marriage.
And I am glad you liked this post.
Love and best wishes from the second most wonderful man on earth 🙂
Oh darlin’, this Ozark Farm Chick loved this Valentine post. Such great advice!!! I think all MEN especially should read it.
Farm Boy and I have been hitched 39 years and countin’. We’re pretty much down to a card for him and a big old heart shaped box of chocolates. He eats the dark and I eat the milk chocolates. It’s tradition! Heeeheehhe!!!
We’ll cuddle up on the love seat after a great home cooked meal and enjoy a movie together then some ‘fireworks!!!” ‘Just sayin’………
Hubs makes me feel ‘special’ each and every day of the year and that’s what counts in my book!!!
God bless ya from the happy hills and hollers of the lovestruck Missouri Ponderosa!!!
Happy Valentine’s Day Ya’ll!!!!
Nezzy, so good to have you visit my blog. Welcome.
Yes, I agree – all men should read this post – let’s make it happen!
Happy Valentine’s to you too – enjoy the “fireworks” 🙂
Awesome post Arvind!
This is indeed a wonderful collection about everything related to love- especially with Valentine’s Day just round the corner 🙂
I would be bookmarking this page and sitting to read all about it in the coming days.
I guess this is one day where we can sit back and reach out by connecting with our loved ones, especially if we haven’t been doing so lately- due to whatever reasons 🙂
Thanks for sharing and wishing you a wonderful Valentine’s as well 🙂
Harleena, glad you liked this post.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Just sit back and reach out by connecting with your loved ones:-)
well done arvind …and thanks for sharing your blog globally that everyone can utilize it..all the people who posted here were so good enough with the other’s