—

Charles Bukowski

1. Tell them how great they are and how much you appreciate them.

2. Be genuine and real in your relationships. Don’t pretend and wear a mask but share your true, authentic self.

3. Note, however, that being genuine doesn’t mean always dumping your garbage on those around you. Be respectful of their needs and feelings too – and recognise that we influence and affect others’ moods. That is, we can choose to either brighten or pollute the atmosphere.

4. Be a great listener. We feel loved and valued when others really listen to us (and demonstrate they’re listening through their nonverbal cues).

5. Don’t try to fix, change and make them into different people. Instead, allow them the freedom to be themselves, as well.

6. Recognise that we don’t have to agree with, or respect, others’ choices in order to have a good relationship with them. A lot of the time, we can simply agree to disagree.