Marriage can seem pretty complicated.

There are scores of websites, hundreds of books and thousands of research articles.

And yet folks — perhaps even yourselves – are still struggling.

Sometimes it’s nice just to back off from all that complexity. Think simple thoughts. Do simple things that make a difference.

In this week’s shorter summer episode (still on holidays – yay!) we take a break from our usual research-based programming to remind you that simple still works.

In this case, following the theme of using romantic text messages from our previous post, we want you to think about how you can use sticky notes to spice up your marriage.

The thought behind this strategy is to engage in small activities that are easy to do but build fondness and admiration into your marriage.

You need lots of that. According to Dr. John Gottman we need 5 positive moments for every negative moment in our marriage

Sticky notes are an easy way to do that. You can court your spouse with them. You can add some fun to your marriage with them. And you can use them as little sparks to light the fire in your marriage.

Generally, life is fairly stressful. You’re likely facing a lot of challenges. But these little moments of positivity create buffers against stress and its impact on your marriage.

We want you to be intentional about this. Sticky notes are inexpensive but they can add a lot of value to your marriage!

You can use them to surprise your spouse. You can use them to remind your spouse. You can stick them anywhere. Try:

Wondering what to write on them? Well, you don’t have a lot of space so it has got to be meaningful and pithy. How about:

Give it a shot. Let us know how it goes!