Building Blocks for Building Solid Relationships

Building relationships is such an important part of business and life; but why do some fail time after time while others succeed? Though building relationships comes more naturally to some in comparison to others, below are some building block ideas that can help anyone build stronger relationships.

1. Smile Often

A good start to building relationships is to smile often. People tend to like those who smile, because they are usually happy, cheery, and have a positive attitude. A smile can immediately break any tension that may exist, and it encourages others to be open, warm, and friendly. Besides, smiling also makes people feel good.

2. Show Interest

It is always a good idea to show interest in people—especially if you can do it immediately! If you know you will be meeting with a specific person, such as a new client or maybe a job interviewer, do some research on that person by asking common acquaintances, co-workers, and others what they know about the person. With technology these days, you can also do searches online for information about the person. Also, ask good questions and then in follow-up interactions, talk about the person's interests. It is also very important to remember family member names or other names the person mentions and to ask follow-up questions about pervious conversations you may have had. Doing this will show a genuine interest in the person, and it will strengthen the relationship.

3. Offer Compliments & Praise

Very few people claim to not enjoy compliments from others—and those who do can’t really mean it. However, you must be careful when offering compliments. Be sure they are honest and sincere—not forced. For some this can be very hard, but as with most skills, practice makes perfect. Pay close attention to what the person is doing or saying as well, so you will catch things you can later compliment them on. Also, look for ways to help the person feel important through praise or recognition.

4. Be a Good Listener

It is hard to have the patience to listen, especially with our overfilled schedules, but we must. To build relationships we must be able and willing to actively listen to others. Listening helps you show interest, and it makes the person feel important. You can show you are listening by repeating or paraphrasing what the person is saying or by adding to the conversation. Never get caught doing something while someone else it talking, such as looking at your computer screen, checking a text message on your phone, or scribbling a note.

5. Don’t Criticize or Complain

Doing either of these things turns people off. People do not want to be around or socialize with negative people. People will also wonder what you say about them when they are not around if you are constantly criticizing, complaining, or condemning. Avoid these negative attitudes at all costs. Again this may take some practice. Asking others to point out when you are complaining or criticizing will help you in your efforts to eliminate these negative comments, and in turn it will help you build relationships.

Building relationships in life is perhaps the most important skill we must learn to master. Practicing and developing the above ideas will help us in our efforts to build relationships. As we do these things, we will become better leaders; and we will enjoy life more fully because of our stronger and deeper relationships with others.