The 7th step in my “Steps to a Happier Life” is to Engage with Others, and it is all about having happier relationships.
People with strong and broad social relationships are happier, healthier and live longer.
This has been on my mind over the Easter break, as I have connected with those close to me like my Father, who came to visit.
Springtime is full of new life, and some people celebrate springtime, or Easter, by giving one another eggs – I bought my Dad a mint chocolate egg, which seemed to go down well! The ancient Zoroastrians painted eggs for their New Year celebration, which falls on the Spring equinox. Later, Christians began exchanging eggs as a symbol of Christ’s tomb (or the boulder at its entrance) from which they believe Jesus rose, alive once more, on Easter Sunday.
In many traditions then, eggs symbolise new life. And they are often exchanged as tokens of friendship, love, or good wishes.
Gifting small tokens is one of many ways we can strengthen our relationships and connections with others. And strong relationships become happier relationships, increasing our own happiness too.
Answer the questions below to get you thinking about your connections with others:
– Which groups of people do you connect with at the moment? (e.g. family, friends, neighbours, work colleagues, community groups, charities, hobbies, sports…)
– What other groups exist nearby that you could consider getting involved with?
– Who could you have some fun with this month, to strengthen your relationship? What might you do together?
– What could you do to improve your relationship with your partner? See this website for some ideas:
http://www.actionforhappiness.org/take-action/enhance-your-relationship-with-your-partner
– Who haven’t you telephoned for a while, that you could call?
– Who haven’t you seen for a while, that you could arrange to meet up with?
– Who could you connect with more at work, perhaps for lunch, or for a coffee/pint after work?
– Think about all the relationships and connections in your life – list all the possible things that you could consider doing to strengthen them?
One of the things I work on with my coaching clients is building happier relationships with the people close to them. Amongst other things I help people to examine their behaviours in their relationships, to identify any limiting beliefs about them that are holding them back and to take action to make all their relationships better.
The questions above are just the starting point to thinking about how better to engage with others and develop good social connections, but hopefully it has given you some food for thought…
Good luck!
And, tell me what you think – share what you have done to strengthen your relationships and develop new ones, and how you felt afterwards – it’s great to hear your experiences, and I feature some of them in my newsletters.
Leave a comment here, or email me: Mary@Coach-me-Happy.co.uk