Anthony Meerak, Relationship Writer

Public announcement

It's love, it's infatuation. Whatever it is, it feels good and we want everyone to know we are in looooovvvvve! Whenever we are in a good mood, sharing the feeling is always top of our agenda. This not only happens in relationship, other scenarios are promotions or graduations.

Why we shouldn't do it: A relationship should be about the two people involved, without the extra baggage of friends and family. Once others start to meddle, it puts more pressure on the relationship.

No need to let everyone stir the pot with scrutiny, criticism or Dr Phil advice. Tell the so-called experts thanks, but no thanks.

Overzealous behaviour

Why we do it: Meeting a good person is like spotting a diamond in the rough that no one has seen. You want to hold your partner close and never let him or her go

You may have also sacrificed a lot of time getting to know the person. Allowing him or her to slip out of your hands would be a heartbreaker.

Why we should not do it: Such behaviour can be quite suffocating for the other person involved. Imagine starting a relationship with someone and he or she's watching your every move and keeping tabs on you.

Selective observation

Why we do it: When we are starting a relationship, thinking of one's partner is often as powerful as presence. Throughout the day, they are on our minds, and what are the things we choose to think about? All their good qualities, whether we admit it or not, it's us being selective. Perhaps we want to believe there is a perfect person out there for us, who does and says everything we like. We simply choose to remember everything about the person we like.

Why we should not do it: Overlooking someone's bad qualities is never a good idea. It doesn't allow us to have a fair assessment of the relationship. While this is not detrimental in the initial stage, the impact is more crucial on a long term basis. Perhaps you may have someone who is very helpful around the house, but show signs of being verbally abusive. It may start with a curse word the first time you met each other and progress into frequent outbursts of defamatory slurs.