Management of Interpersonal Relationships

An interpersonal relationship is the association that exists between two or more people who have common goals, values, and interests. These relationships develop over time as people interact through social media platforms or one on one. These relationships are paramount in our day-to-day lives as they fulfill our social need to belong. We have three types of interpersonal relationships that range from acquaintances, friends, and intimates. When we first meet a person we endeavor to discover if any common characteristic exists between us and availability of it leads to us been acquaintances, a situation in which our conversations are minimal and impersonal. With time, our relationship with some of the acquaintances develops to more personal association leading to them been our friends. If the bond continuous to grow we eventually move from been friends to been intimates, a relationship that can either take the form of platonic intimates where we are not sexually attracted to each other or romantic partners where sexual attraction exists.
The process of forming an interpersonal relationship is composed of three stages, which involve coming together, maintaining the relationship, and separation that results when the people involved are unable to work towards the success of their union. Owing to the many challenges faced by these associations such as the indifferences associated with whether to open up or keep silent, whether to maintain independence or connect with our partners among others.

Factors such as the ability to major on the similarities that exist between our partners and us, respect the differences and be ready to spend time together as well as selflessness go a long way in saving relationships. Communication, trust, and compromise are also key factors to maintaining healthy relationships.
Advancement in technology has brought with it many benefits as well as limitations regarding how we meet and develop relationships. For example, using the internet, we can meet and make new friends, keep in touch, share information and knowledge. Use of internet to make friends can also be dangerous because it provides a platform for people to pretend and act their best hence from here we can make friends with criminals without our knowledge and this will be dangerous should we meet them in person.
In today’s society where our bonding with others encounter many challenges such as lack of confidence, enough time to meet and catch up, selfishness and indifferences brought by the need to remain independent and in control, I can borrow a lot from the above tips on how to maintain and grow my unions. For example, to counter the challenge of time I could use the internet to keep in connecting with my current friends as well as making new ones. Development of qualities such as the ability to initiate conversations, politeness and friendliness, willingness to provide emotional support and keeping my partners needs first will go a long way in helping me have strong associations. Conflict resolution techniques such as been ready to choose among competing choices, having the will to compromise, as well as changing my view towards the issue causing the difference will help in saving my relationships. Employing communication strategies such as communicating on a regular basis, been honest, understanding, respectful, empathy and readiness to forgive will also spice up my associations. Employment of mechanisms such as disclosure, a situation where I am ready to open up to my partner about secrets that may affect the relationship and been willing to offer answers whenever necessary goes a long way in producing success in the relationship. These mechanisms enable us to reduce uncertainties, identify the similarities that exist between us and work on our differences.
It takes time and determination to build a relationship but this does not prevent it from collapsing at any given time when we fail to take the necessary precautions. We should therefore always be ready to work towards maintaining our associations.