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Friday, October 21, 2005

Celebrate Your Wedding Anniversary Better than a Billionaire

Good morning, Live Better than a Billionaire-a-Holics!

Are you feeling motivated this morning? I certainly hope so. I know that I am!

Was your wedding day terrific?

If not, would you like to have terrific memories of your wedding?

If you answered "yes" to either of these questions, this blog post may help you enjoy a wonderful anniversary.

The key here is to create the unexpected in a loving way.

Here's the expectation that your spouse probably has for your next anniversary (unless it is one that most people celebrate in special ways): You'll go out to dinner, say "I love you" a few times, come home and enjoy some romantic moments.

And that's perfectly nice.

But it can be even nicer to exceed those expectations to show you really care.

Now, the diamond companies like to promote the idea of dropping $5,000 for a new ring for wives . . . but that's the billionaire way. A billionaire might have to drop $500,000 for a new ring. Do you think that makes the anniversary better? Perhaps it provides an exciting moment or two, but I suspect that the thrill is soon gone.

You know your spouse better than I do, so for today I can only suggest some ideas to get you started. I'm sure you'll come up with something that better fits your spouse's ideas of romantic love and anniversary celebrations.

1. Write a romantic poem about your spouse.

A poem shows you care in several nice ways. First, you took some time and thought. Second, you probably worked on this for more than one day. Third, a nicely framed copy of the poem makes a nice daily reminder of your love. Fourth, unless you are a poet, it shows that you went the extra mile because you care.

2. Plan a surprise overnight excursion.

Obviously, this takes a little advanced planning. You will have to arrange for someone to walk the dog or stay with your kids. Such planning often takes more time than the length of the getaway. By taking on that task yourself, you make the excursion more fun for your spouse. Set it up so that no special clothes or preparation are required. Unless your spouse likes surprises with no warning, don't wait to the last minute. Some people like to have time to pack.

A good spot to visit is one where you went on your honeymoon, a beautiful locale where you've enjoyed romantic getaways in the past, or a place where both of you have been talking about for years.

One year, my wife and I went to Niagara Falls. While that may seem like a trite thing to do, our anniversary is in mid-November when there's no one there. We had the place to ourselves and just pretended like we were honeymooners. It was a ball.

3. Build activities around a theme.

For instance, if you think your spouse is unique . . . visit uniquely great spots. For husbands who live in Paris, this might include visiting the Mona Lisa at the Louvre to tell her you appreciate her timeless beauty. For wives who live in New York, this might include visiting the Statue of Liberty and tell your husband that his love helps set you free.

Our wedding anniversary this year is our 21st. I'm thinking about treating this day like it is our mutual 21st birthday, and do all the things that people do when they turn 21. If we were blackjack players (which we aren't), we could go play in a casino.

4. Plan little surprises during the day.

I like to give lots of cards to people for special occasions. I hand out the cards throughout the day to extend the appreciation and to underscore the significance of what we are doing at different moments.

There are many services which will come and help you with such surprises. Perhaps you could arrange for a violinist to show up to play for you over dinner in a restaurant.


5. Make lots of photographs of the day and turn them into an album.

As we get older, many of our happy memories fade. If you take the time to photograph or video your anniversary, it will come to life for both of you whenever you want.

6. Give your spouse a gift of your time and attention.

We all know things that our spouses would like us to do that we haven't done yet. It might be cleaning out the garage or attic, losing weight, going to a special class reunion or fixing the shower. Surprise your spouse by promising to do one of those things . . . and make good on your promise.

7. Give your spouse a year's worth of extra hugs and kisses.

Hugs and kisses are great for marriages. Many of us don't give or receive enough of them. Pick up the pace starting on your anniversary and keep it up. Let your spouse know that you want more loving contact like this and invite her or him to start practicing.

Please add your comments with favorite things you've done for your anniversary. I'm sure that other readers will be interested. Thanks!

Can any billionaire do better? I doubt it.

Billionaires have to deal with expensive expectations. Unless the billionaire likes fulfilling those expectations, the billionaire may feel like the anniversary celebration is simply another excuse for the spouse to "hit the jackpot" especially if the spouse is not rich on his or her own.

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N.B. As you can tell, I'm experimenting with color. Let me know what you like and what I should change about my use of color. Many thanks to Linda Grace for her suggestions which I am following!

Please let me know what else you would like to learn, and I'll do my best to help in future blog entries.

Here are some upcoming subjects:

Tomorrow, we'll look at how to have more fun with your best friends.

Sunday, the post will explore various ways to express gratitude and enjoy your spiritual life more.

On Monday, let's explore how to have your children behave better than a billionaire's.

Tuesday, we'll look at how to provide your children with something interesting to learn when they are bored at school.

On Wednesday, you'll find out how to get the whole world working to help you better than a billionaire.

Thursday, we'll look at how to say it with pictures better than a billionaire.

On Friday, let's design a great second date!

If you are new to this blog, be sure to check out the updated table of contents entry that I posted on October 19. The table of contents will help you find earlier entries that may be of interest. I'll update this table of contents every week or so for your convenience.

August 31 was the most frequently read blog entry to date. Be sure to check it out!

Thanks so much for your support of this blog. I'm delighted that so many tens of thousands of people have made this blog part of their regular reading habit!

If you like this blog, please let others know who might also enjoy it. E-mailing your favorite post to them is a great idea.

Check out the latest index at http://livebetterthanabillionaireon5dollars.blogspot.com/2005/10/latest-table-of-contents-to-this-blogs.html to pick out your choice.


Thank you to my many friends, students, clients and blog readers who are spreading the good word about this blog.

If you are visiting today because someone invited you, I'm delighted to meet you! Let's stay in touch.

Remember to also visit

Live Spiritually Better than a Billionaire at http://livespirituallybetterthanabillionaire.blogspot.com/,

Be More Successful than a Billionaire at http://bemoresuccessfulthanabillionaire.blogspot.com/,

Enjoy Mansions Better than a Billionaire at http://enjoymansionsbetterthanabillionaire.blogspot.com/,

Enjoy Football Better than a Billionaire at http://enjoyfootballbetterthanabillionaire.blogspot.com/ and

Be a World Hero Better than a Billionaire at http://beaworldherobetterthanabillionaire.blogspot.com/.

I offer individual on-line tutorials and in-person seminars on living better than a billionaire on five dollars extra a day, creating 2,000 percent solutions (20 times the results with the same effort), developing more profitable business models and designing strategies that work regardless of the business environment. For information, contact me at ultimatecompetitiveadvantage@yahoo.com.

I am available to you as a speaker on these subjects. You can find my background at http://livebetterthanabillionaireon5dollars.blogspot.com/2005_08_30_livebetterthanabillionaireon5dollars_archive.html/.

May God bless you.

Donald W. Mitchell, Your Dream Concierge

Copyright 2005 Donald W. Mitchell