My Relationship Articles
Building Relationships, Commitment, And Love - O Is For...
We continue our series on how to build interpersonal relationships, whether with family, coworkers, friends, or that special someone. Commitment and love are important to all of us; they are worth fighting for; they are worth working for...
You also should know that in spite of many promises there is no secret for success, no checklist of things to do, and just as importantly no checklist of things not to do. But we do have suggestions, now continuing with the letter L. The focus is on obedience, open, and option.
O is for obedience. Interestingly enough the word obedience comes from two Latin words, ob meaning towards and oedire meaning to hear. Literally obedience means to listen towards. Figuratively it means listen and respond to what you have heard. However, responding “the wrong way” is no sign of obedience. Until not very long ago a bride promised to love, honor, and obey her bridegroom. He also made promises but obedience was not one of them. Times have changed, at least in many parts of the world. Yes, you (and here I mean men and women equally) must follow certain rules of conduct with respect to those who you love. But obedience is not part of the mix. Now to the work world. In a sense you have to obey your employer. Often you will get a chance to make your case before carrying out company policy. Ideally your role is one of loyalty and participation rather than mere obedience. If such is not the case obey your instincts, and your pocketbook.
Afterwards wash up and scratch my back.
O is for open. Keep an open mind. But, to quote my father, not one so open that all your brains fall out of your head. Don’t decide before hearing both sides. Please note, I’m not saying that both sides are equally correct (the famous there are two sides to every story). Sometimes one side is clearly right and the other clearly wrong. But you won’t know that until you have heard both of them. And open and shut case starts by being opened.
An open mind is a wonderful thing.
O is for outline. A quick outline of the work you have to do is not out of line. You don’t always need fancy software to create a sophisticated chart showing what to do and when to do it. Often a simple outline lines it all out. Set up the major steps just inside the left-hand margin. Indent intermediate steps. A good outline presents a visual picture of what to do and the interrelationships between activities. A quick little outline can save you time and effort. If you don’t set one up you may be out of line.