Keeping Relationships Healthy..

“When it comes to love, you need not fall but rather surrender, surrender to the idea that you must love yourself before you can love another. You must absolutely trust yourself before you can absolutely trust another and most importantly you must accept your flaws before you can accept the flaws of another”.

Relationships with our spouses and girl/boy-friends can be one of the most rewarding aspects of our lives. We hold a special place for that someone with whom we’ve shared countless moments of joy. Personality differences are inevitable, and what makes us unique as individuals can result in disagreements and conflicts during our relationship.

The following are some pointers that have proven to be effective in our relationship
• Make sure both sides of the dispute get equally heard. Too many times, one person does all of the talking. No matter how tempted you are to start talking, always be ready to listen as well, and not just half-heartedly. Understand what your partner says, just as you expect them to do when it’s your turn to talk.
• Love.
• Recognize the Crying Baby - By bringing awareness into a situation, we will get better at recognizing when our partner is in the crying baby state. When they are in a baby state, it is highly beneficial if we remain calm. Don’t take what they say personally during this state, they don’t mean it.
• Love.
• Compromise. Learn to bend at times. Be flexible. If you are able to try different things while keeping an open mind, you’ll find yourselves a lot happier with your relationship and with yourself.
• Love.
• Ask yourself: “Am I arguing so that I could win the battle?” - If the answer is yes, ask yourself whether winning this battle will make a difference in your life in 40 years? How about tomorrow?
• Love.
• Forgive & Accept - Remember that inside, we are all good people. Really, we were all born innocent, loving, kind and generous. See the light in them, as you too have that light within yourself.
• Love.
• Apologize & Explain - Say I’m sorry and show that you mean it by explaining why you are sorry. Don’t be shy or let your pride get in the way. Life is short, do the right thing, instead of the thing right for your ego.
• And Love and love….


Conflict Resolution Skills
Conflict can endanger relationships, but if handled well, it can also provide opportunities for growth, ultimately strengthening the bond between two people. Since relationship conflicts are inevitable, learning to deal with them (rather than avoiding them) is crucial. Recognizing and managing conflict is also an essential part of building emotional intelligence, and nurturing relationships at home and work. Learn the skills you need for conflict resolution, and keep your relationships strong and growing.