Marriage maintenance

After opening his own clinic and bagging a wife 10 years his junior, 39-year-old Katsuhiro Takada’s life seemed to be sailing along quite nicely. That is until relations between the acupuncturist and his bride began to sour. The young woman constantly sniping at her always-at-work husband, berating him with numerous not so niceties as “Never come home!” and “You’ll never succeed!”

Confronted with this problem, Takada did the only thing he knew how to — he began reading his large collection of how-to business books. Yet as preposterous as it sounds, this unusual approach actually worked. Yes, business management models it seems are applicable to unhappy partners, as Takada-san’s wife is now the model loving and supportive spouse.

The practical practitioner was so enamoured with this soar away success that he began dispensing advice to an online magazine, his suggestions becoming so popular that he now has his own web space that has a regular readership of around 3,000 people.

So what exactly did Takada glean from his business books? Well, the secret to a happy marriage can apparently be broken down into seven manageable points:

1. Listen to your wife attentively at least once a day without asking her to hurry up or get to the point.
2. Share the housework.
3. Do not forget to say “Thank you” and “You are kind.”
4. Never look down at your wife.
5. Do your work together with your wife if you are self-employed.
6. Do not fight. Listen to your wife patiently at first, even if you think she is completely wrong.
7. If there is something you really need or want to buy, persuade your wife daily so that she will come around to understanding why you want it.

All sound advice, but remarkably the list makes no mention of the perennial lavatory seat up/down conundrum. Although Takada’s final piece of advice may allude to such toilet trouble. “If you want your wife to change, you need to change, too.”

And that’s basically all there is to it.