How to Keep Your Girlfriend Happy

Make Her Feel Special Be Someone She Can Trust Be Willing To Compromise

Edited by erika, Dave Crosby, Maluniu, Bo and 80 others

It's one thing to get a girl to go out with you long-term, but it's another thing altogether to keep her happy. Sometimes, you may have a hard time figuring out what she wants, or you may get lazy and forget to show her that you love her. Although relationships do take work, you'll find that the rewards are worth it. Follow the tips in this article to keep your girlfriend happy.

(If you enjoy, follow and share my blogs, on the bottom left corner.) 

Part 1 of 3: Make Her Feel Special

1. 
   Treat her like a princess. Open doors for her, offer her your jacket, pull her chair out for her and stand up when she enters the room. She'll love these little gestures. When you take her on dates, never make her pay or split the bill. Girls love it when a guy takes care of the dinner bill like it's no big deal. 
2.  Compliment her. Tell her she is beautiful, especially when she least expects it. Girls can spend a lot of effort trying to look nice, and it will make her happy that you noticed.
   • Make your compliments meaningful and truthful. Instead of "Your hair is pretty," try "I really like the way you did your hair tonight! It looks so soft and beautiful."
   • Don't be ashamed to compliment her or show her affection in front of others. Real men aren't ashamed to show the world they've found a good woman, and your girl will love you for that. People talk publicly about the things they value. She will instantly feel like a priority if you are confident enough to show the world how you feel about her. Hold her hand in the mall or throw your arm around her at the movies.
3. 
   Pay attention to her. After you've been together for a while, you can easily fall into a pattern of forgetting to make her feel special. Some guys also deliberately ignore their girlfriends as a way of getting back at them or as a way of punishing them.
   • Let her know you're thinking about her. For example, send her a text when you're thinking about her. Just be sure not to text anything you might not want her friends or family to read. Try texting her good morning as often as possible. A girl loves to know she's the first thing on her boyfriend's mind when he starts his day.
   • Never ignore her as a way of being manipulative. You'll hurt her immensely, and if you ignore her often enough, she may dump you. Don't leave her waiting for you to call or talk to her. If you're having a problem, speak up.
4. 
   Be spontaneous. Surprise her with flowers or notes. Whisk her away for an unplanned romantic dinner, day or weekend.
   • Take her somewhere new. Many girls will get bored if you take them to the same place time after time (unless it's a special place for the both of you) so mix it up a little. You should enjoy the variety of new places with her because you'll create new conversation topics and memories together.
   • Make sure you plan anything on a night/day/weekend when you know she has things to do. Ask her about her schedule in a casual way so that she doesn't know you're planning something.
5. Return her calls and texts. Unless she specifies that you don't need to call her back, you need to be responsive when your girlfriend calls you. Let her know she's on your mind even though you are not with her in person. Girls can get insecure when ignored. A confident girl is a happy girl, and a happy girl is good to her boyfriend.
6. Surprise her with gifts. Even a small gift, like her favorite candy bar, goes a long way. Listen when she tells you about things she wants, and surprise her from time to time by getting her something special.
   • Don't buy gifts at the last minute. Invest some time, and put some thought into it. What does she like? Music? Scarves? Delicate bracelets? Does she have any collections? Does she have a wish list somewhere you can buy from? Has she mentioned wanting anything lately? Perhaps you could ask your mom or her best friend for advice.
   • Never forget important holidays or anniversaries that matter to both of you. Listen to hints she may be dropping about what she wants. Thoughtful gifts will show her you care. Bring her to the mall and pay attention to what she points out.
   • Get her something she can wear every day to remind her how much you care about her. A locket with a picture of you inside can be an awesome idea.
   • If she gets you a gift for a holiday and you don't get her one in return, she's probably going to be bummed (even if she doesn't admit it). If this has happened in the past, make sure it doesn't happen again, and make up for doing it with a few surprise gifts.
7. Make her laugh. Use humor in a natural way. You don't have to tell corny jokes at every opportunity unless she likes that sort of thing. Know what kind of humor she likes. When she's upset, try and cheer her up with some humor.
8. 
   Respect her. Remember that your girlfriend is not your "property." Be mindful of her opinions and desires, even if they differ from your own. Don't make her feel stupid just because she doesn't agree with you about everything.

Part 2 of 3: Be Someone She Can Trust

1. Be sensitive when you talk about female friends. If you have female friends that you would like your girlfriend to befriend or if you want her to trust you in your friendships with other women, never compliment your female friends' physical attributes.
   
   
   • If you have something positive to say about a female friend, say something about her personality, as in, that she is warm, friendly or creative. Whatever you do, don't lead in with, "My friend is coming to town and I really want you to meet her. You'll really like her. She's gorgeous! All of my friends can't keep their eyes off her - when she's around, conversation stops because all the guys just keep staring at her!"
   • Understand that your girlfriend may be suspicious of your female friends at first. Always uplift your girlfriend so that knows that she is the only one in the world that you have eyes for. Your friendships with your female friends will be accepted much more smoothly if you follow this step.
2. Tell the truth about important issues but know when little white lies are appropriate. Major lies will drive a wedge of suspicion and mistrust between you and your girlfriend that you may never be able to fix. You may throw away a whole relationship with just one act of mistrust.
   • Show her you're trustworthy by your actions. Conversations you have with other women should never border the line of being flirtatious or intimate. She needs to know that she can trust you in speech and conduct even in the little things. If you have a hard time with this one, maybe you aren't ready for a relationship and should instead question why you feel the need to flirt with other women in the first place.
   • When you are in a relationship, never tell her that another woman is prettier than she is. If she asks you whether another girl is more attractive than she is, then your default answer should always be a resounding "NO!"
   • Never talk about how you find some celebrity really gorgeous. Doing this will only make her feel bad about herself, and she will resent you for it. When you do feel the need to comment on the beauty of someone like Angelina Jolie or Scarlett Johansson, always remind your girlfriend that, in your eyes, she is more attractive.
3. 
   Confide in her. Open up to her in a way that you don't do for most people. When you show her that you trust her, she's more likely to trust you back. Keep her secrets when she does the same for you. You can show your girlfriend a side of you that you don't normally share with your buddies.
4. Have good online and phone etiquette. When you’re in a relationship, make sure that you say so on your Facebook account. Be proud of her so that she'll feel confident in you.
   • If someone hits on you online, tell your girlfriend right away. If you keep a secret from her, and if she is already insecure, then hiding your secret will make her insecurity worse.
   • Avoid communicating with other girls over e-mail, text or social networks without letting your girlfriend know what you're doing. If you're flirting with someone else via text message and your girlfriend discovers your texts, then she's going to be furious.
5. 5
   Defend her in front of other people. If someone is teasing her, take her side. Girls need to know that their men have their backs at all times. How would you feel if she took her friends' or your friends' side over yours? Let her know she can depend on you to stick up for her.

Part 3 of 3: Be Willing To Compromise

1. 1
   Make an effort to get along with her friends and family. If her friends and family don't like you, then they may eventually convince her that you're not good for her. Always act like a gentleman around her friends and family so that they'll encourage her to keep going out with you. You may not like them as much as she does, but you should make an effort to be nice because you care about her.
   
   
2. 2
   Balance your time spent with friends and with her. Never make her feel like you'd rather be with your friends than be with her. At the same time, you need to have friendships with other people besides your girlfriend. Just make sure you strike a balance.
3. 
   Don't take her for granted. Keep in mind that she could leave you, so you'd better work hard at keeping her happy so that you can keep her as your girlfriend. If you want to keep her, it's time to start treating her like a gentleman should.
   • Don't put your hobbies, video games, YouTube, music or other things you like before her. Never listen to music with headphones on when she's sitting there next to you, even if one earbud is out.
   • When she goes on a date with you, she doesn't go there so that you can play games on your iPhone and text your buddies. If you do things like that, she'll think you're rude and that you don't want to spend time with her. After all, you can do that stuff as much as you'd like when she's not around.
4. Give each other space. Don't smother your girlfriend. You want her to be excited each time she sees or hears from you. If you smother her, she may become overwhelmed, which could ruin a good relationship. 
5. Be willing to change. If she mentions something you do that bothers her, change your behavior.
   • Girls will only take so much hurt in a relationship. If you are constantly hurting her, then you're going to lose her. Some girls can and will take some low blows from their boyfriends, but in time, she will realize she can find someone who will treat her like she wants to be treated.
   • You shouldn't change who you are, but when it comes to minor issues, relationships require compromise from both ends. She should be willing to do the same for you.

Tips

• Girls like guys who work hard for their affection. Do not get too comfortable in the relationship. Keep doing the same things you did to get her and you will be amazed at how much she will give back in return.
• Remember that girls love romance. Don't stop making romantic gestures, like making a candlelit dinner for her or buying her flowers.

Warnings

• Every girl is unique, so you can't necessarily treat your current girlfriend the way you treated your last girlfriend and expect her to automatically be happy. Keeping your girlfriend happy isn't a "cut and paste" operation, so make sure that you treat her in a way that recognizes her unique needs and wants.