3Great relationships are relationships in which there is a balance in the “give and take” involved. Both parties in the relationship are invested, and each party is “seen” for whom he is rather that for whom the other person wants him to be. Here is how to make a relationship great.Make your relationships great(c) Lynda Bernhardt
- Recognize that investing in your relationships is a choice. Every minute of every day, you are choosing to either strengthen or weaken the relationships in your life. If you want to make your relationships great, then you must invest in them.Spend time with the people you love. If you want to make your relationships great, then you will spend time with the people you care about. Resist the urge to place other commitments ahead of your relationships and carve out time to nurture the relationships that matter to you the most.Respect the people you love. If you want to make your relationships great, then you will treat the people you love respectfully. Show up on time when you have plans to meet. Do not cancel plans with the people you love when other areas of your life attempt to crowd out the relationships you want to nurture.Invest in what matters to the people you love. If you want to make your relationships great, then make an effort to care about what your loved ones care about. For example, even if you do not care about horses yourself, take the time to learn about horses if the person you love cares about them. If something matters to the person you love, then it should matter enough to you to learn at least a little bit about the subject.Be vulnerable. If you want to make your relationships great, then you need to let down your guard and reveal the “real you.” Be honest and open about who you are.Accept the other person as she is. If you want to make your relationships great, you need to see the other person as she really is, and you need to accept her, warts and all. Let go of what you wanted the other person to be so you can appreciate the beauty of who she actually is. You might even find that who she is transcends what you wanted her to be.Make sacrifices when necessary. If you want to make your relationships great, you need to be willing to experience discomfort, or even pain, on occasion when it is best for the other person. For example, sometimes you have to experience the pain of being apart in order to encourage the person you love to achieve his dreams.Stay committed. If you want to make your relationships great, you need to stay committed to the other person, even during the times when you no longer have “warm and fuzzy" feelings toward the other person. Love is a choice, not a feeling. If you stay committed to your relationships, the feelings of love will cycle back around.
