We can all probably agree that communication is  a key ingredient to creating and maintaining healthy relationships, whether the person is our roommate, best friend, dating partner, professor, supervisor or even Mom! But how do we go about learning these all-important skills? Mostly through trial and error it seems, so Discovery Health offers some advice for building healthier communication. While their focus is primarily on male-female dating relationships, there is advice that can apply to any kind of interpersonal interaction.

Here’s a snippet:

Four “Simple” Communication Tools
Steve Stewart, author of 52 Simple Rules to Improve Your Relationship, says that each partner needs to get what he or she wants from a relationship for it to be successful. To help couples communicate more effectively, Stewart uses four simple but effective tools:

1. Ask for what you want. Stewart says that most people don’t ask for what they want because they think they can’t get it. But the opposite is typically true. Most people are surprised to learn/to find out that they can get what they want simply by asking.
2. Show your partner what you want to receive. “In other words,” says Stewart, “give your partner what you would like your partner to give you.”
3. Learn to negotiate. Relationships are give and take. For example — “Honey, I will cook dinner, if you will do the dishes afterward.”
4. Learn to modify what you want. “Ask yourself if what you want is really something you have to have,” says Stewart.

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Discussion Questions:
What has helped you develop your interpersonal communication skills?
What is your strength when it comes to communicating with others?
What do you still struggle with the most?

Tags: communication, relationships