(CNN) -- "If it's your first marriage, you've got a 50-50 chance," Doyle Hamilton said, looking around the room. "If it's your second, you've got less than that."

A few couples shifted uncomfortably under his unwavering gaze. One woman kicked her fiancé under the table.

"The No. 1 indicator of divorce is not conflict," Hamilton continued. "The No. 1 indicator of divorce is the AVOIDANCE of conflict. Marriage is hard work. We want you to program that into your brains."