Avoiding Financial Infidelity to Avoid Divorce Court

I just returned to Seattle (had to see my family law attorney). Marriage is always a gamble. Some couples are able to hang in there despite their differences. Many marriages are doomed from the start and divorce was inevitable.
Why do nearly half of all marriages end in divorce? Money is cited most often, followed by infidelity, lack of communication, differences in wants and goals, lack of commitment to the marriage, sexual problems, addictions, failed expectations, and abuse–physical, and/or emotional.
Since its beginning, marriage has been a contract between two people. Each person has expectations and hopes that rarely are expressed. Each typically has a picture or ideal in their mind of what marriage will be like and reality seldom lives up to the dream. Small wonder that a Seattle divorce attorney or Bellevue family law lawyer does a swell as a DUI attorney here in Seattle.
How do you begin a marriage to set the stage for success? First, both parties must have a deep desire for the marriage to succeed. Often one will want the marriage more than the other and will enter into it with the hope that things will improve later. This is seldom the case. But if you both deeply desire the commitment, the next thing to address is communication.
Ask questions. Find out what expectations each of you have of the other. Couples who both want basically the same things, who share the important values, have a better chance to accept one another’s flaws and differences.
Be open and honest about money. Money issues are the cause of much of the conflict between married couples. Draw up a plan before you get married. The more honest you both can be the better. Make a list of expenses and draw up a budget.
A budget can show you where every dollar is going. Your budget should be revised and updated often to adjust to the any changes that come up.
Nothing makes you feel more powerful or in control than to identify sources of waste, areas where you may be spending more than you intend because of habit or lack of consciousness.
Budgets allow you to identify priorities and work toward goals as a team. The sum of two people in alignment can certainly transcend what one alone can accomplish. Also, areas of differences in priorities and potential conflicts can be addressed.
Budgets can allow you start off on the right path and build powerful, healthy habits. Unnecessary stress, misunderstanding, arguments and conflicts can be minimized.
Budgets can transforms money from a source of contention into a tool to achieve goals and satisfy needs.