This post is all about having good relationships with others.
You have a lot going on. From school to work to your social life, it’s difficult to find time for the people in your life. Sometimes, you forget how to be a good friend or partner because you don’t have time for it.
That’s why we’ve compiled a list of reminders on how to maintain good relationships. Plus, this list will help you learn which relationships it might be time to leave.
This post is all about having good relationships with others.
GOOD RELATIONSHIPS:
1. Communication
Always be open and communicate with the people in your life. You should work even harder to communicate with the people you care about. If you’re struggling to balance everything, be open about that.
Let the people you care about know that they’re a priority even if you’re struggling to prove that. The moment you’re honest with them, you will be deepening your trust and emotional intimacy in your relationship.
2. Trust and Reliability
Remember that you can rely on the people in your life. It’s important to prioritize the relationships that matter to you and avoid taking people for granted. It’s also important to remember that your relationships are a source of strength and support.
Plus, when you’re doing well, you can be the person your friends and family rely on to get through challenging times. Let people know they can trust you.
3. Respectful Boundaries
Listen when people share their boundaries with you. They’re letting you know how to be better friends to them. So, listen and ask questions until you understand what your friend needs.
This also means you should never feel guilty for having your own boundaries. Whether you value your privacy or you appreciate when people respect your “no,” you have the right to set your own boundaries.
Part of being a good friend is making sure you value the relationships in your life enough to keep them in your life.
4. Empathy and Understanding
Learn where someone is coming from. Ask them about their behavior, especially if it seems out of character or offends you. Let them see as someone to rely on and someone they can share their feelings with.
No matter what’s going on in your life, be ready to help someone when they really need it because that’s what a friend does. The hardest part is letting someone shut down and avoid talking when they think that’s what they need.
Do your best to understand where someone is coming from and empathize. And keep in mind that other people may think comfort looks different than you do.
5. Support System
When you put so much energy into making sure that your friends and family feel as prioritized as the other areas of your life, it’s easy to forget that they’re also there for you.
It’s important to avoid taking people for granted. You want to make them feel valued and supported in the same way that you deserve to feel that. So, lean on the people in your life when you’re too busy to lean on yourself.
Let them celebrate you and support you as much as you celebrate and support them.
6. Shared Interests
Get your friends and family involved in your daily activities. Invite a running friend to join you on your morning or afternoon run. Ask if your mom wants to come over for dinner and help you cook.
This isn’t an excuse to have spend with people in only the ways you enjoy. Instead, it’s an opportunity to involve your loved ones in your life that’s equally enjoyable for them as it is for you.
7. Personal Growth
Check in with yourself. Ask yourself if the people in your life support you and encourage you. Yes, you have a lot going on, whether or not that includes you pursuing your passions (and hopefully it does).
Your friends deserve someone who is present in their lives, but you deserve people who support you. Whether you’re just paying the bills or you’re in school or building a career, you need people who support you.
Take a moment to think about the people in your life and whether they support you no matter where you are in life. For the people who don’t support you, you may want to give yourself permission to spend less time with them and prioritize them less.
8. Independence
It doesn’t matter how many people you have in your life or how close you are to them. You still need your independence because you deserve to feel fulfilled apart from the people in your life.
You should feel comfortable and respected by the people who surround you. They should not only support you, but they should also respect the time you dedicate to your independence.
Make sure that you have something in your life for you. You might pick up a hobby, work toward your dream job, go to school, or find something else that you want to do for you.
9. Positive Influence
Positive people help you look at the world in a more positive way. They can give you energy when you’re struggling to get through the day by giving you a different outlook.
This is not to be confused with toxic positivity, which is harmful. Instead, when you focus on surrounding yourself with positive people, you get to spend less energy on the stuff that causes you pain and stress.
You find more reasons to be grateful and get energy from spending time with the people in your life.
10. Resolving Conflicts
Allow arguments to happen. It’s hard to deal with conflict between you and a friend, but it’s always necessary to let them happen anyways.
Conflict isn’t a problem on its own and it’s important for relationships to stay healthy. A lack of conflict means that someone is either hiding their feelings or not as close to you as might want them to be.
So, when arguments happen, resolve them. Find ways of getting through a conflict so that it’s less likely to happen again and so that both of you are content with the resolution. This might mean setting new boundaries, apologizing, or just asking the other person to empathize.
11. Laughter and Joy
Remember to have fun. Enjoy being around the people in your life and indulge the moments when you’re laughing uncontrollably.
If you’re stressing out about whether you’re a good enough friend, chances are you aren’t letting yourself enjoy time with people because you’re focused on improving your relationship.
Part of improving your relationship and making your friend or family member feel valued is indulging the moments when you two are laughing. Enjoy your time with them and remember that you probably think you’re doing a worse job of being a good friend than they think you are.
12. Respecting Diversity
Your friends might define friendship differently than you. They might have different expectation, and it’s a good idea to have a conversation about this to make sure you both meet them.
Plus, when they’re sharing their experiences, think about what they need to hear based on their background. Whether they come from a different culture, race, or religion, they might not have the same values as you.
Support your friend in ways that are meaningful to them while also staying true to the kind of friend you want to be.
13. Practicing Self-Care
Take care of yourself and make sure other people respect that. We all know that self-care has about ten million different definitions these days (annoying). But, all that matters is that you help your future self.
Rest, take breaks, give yourself a face mask, say “no” to a friend when you need time. Go through your financial records to see where the heck your paycheck goes every month.
And find people that respect the time you take for yourself, even if they don’t understand it.
14. Meaningful Connections
You deserve rich and meaningful relationships. And so do your friends and family members. So, take the time to make memories with your loved ones.
Avoid letting your relationships become a series of superficial interactions that don’t mean anything to either of you. Relationships are more than checking a box.
If you notice a relationship isn’t fulfilling anymore, consider whether that relationship is no longer serving you or if you haven’t given it enough time and energy to serve you. It’s entirely possible that you need to move on from it.
But, it’s also worth considering the fact that you haven’t devoted enough energy to that valued relationship for it to continue.
15. Being True to Yourself
Stay true to yourself and what feels right. Find the people who accept you and give you space to be your authentic self. You deserve to feel comfortable around the people in your life.
Over time, you’ll notice the relationships that take your energy. They’ll drain you and make you feel inadequate. The next step is to be open with the people who make you feel like that. Be ready to let go of the people who keep from feeling comfortable with yourself.
