Family Relationships Take Empathy and Respect

To have a strong family it is necessary to cultivate love, respect and empathy, with care, and, above all, understanding.

Raising children isn’t easy. It can destroy family relationships if we don’t do it the right way. We need a ton of patience, love, and kindness if we want to raise them to be healthy people. All this while keeping our marriage healthy.

There are other relevant skills in this job, like knowing how to listen to our children, learning how to put them in their place, establishing boundaries, and creating a feeling of belonging that will bring them security, which is what family is.

All this is also important for adults too. Keep reading to see how to build strong family relationships.

Saying “I Love You,” The Foundation of Family Relationships

In a family, everyone has their own needs, qualities and abilities. That’s why we don’t all express our affection in the same way. 

We also don’t necessarily need people to say it back to us in the same way, though it’s important to communicate it.

Sometimes it’s hard for us to give constructive criticism. Not just with adults, but also with children, and all we do is point out what they’ve done wrong.

The problem is that something that might go unnoticed by us could have big consequences for the self-esteem of others, especially for children. That’s one way of weakening family relationships.

That’s why it’s important to use communication to express what we love about them. How important they are to us and the family. This will fill them up with love and improve their self-esteem.

We Feed Strong Family Relationships With Empathy and Effort

Empathy is a great ally when there are conflicts at home. Trying to put ourselves in the other person’s shoes won’t end the argument immediately. But, it will help us understand them a little bit better.

Plus, it will make it easier for us to explain that we understand their opinion, even if we don’t share their point of view. That’s how we’ll help reach agreements that benefit everyone.

Putting ourselves in other people’s shoes will make another fundamental aspect of strengthening family relationships easier: valuing other people’s effort.

Recognition will function as reinforcement to enable behaviors that we need for good family relationships. Of course, change takes time.

Chores are Good for Family Relationships

In the home, every family member has their obligations. It’s important that these be clearly established and consistent. But, how and when can we make little ones responsible for chores at home? We’ll have to  keep in mind their age, and ask them to do things in line with their abilities. 

Starting at one year of age, you can ask them to do simple tasks that will increase their self-esteem. They can start picking up their toys, help us take something from one place to another, or clean something they dirtied.

And telling them how much they’re helping us and how important they are to the family will make them feel good.

Along with chores, we also have to respect rights in the home. Even when it’s hard, we need to respect each other if we want family relationships that will last for the long haul.

We shouldn’t respect the rights of one family member more than others. Finding a balance in this aspect will prevent unnecessary arguments and misunderstandings. And it will also prevent negative emotions that undermine family relationships.

Images courtesy of  Nathaniel Tetteh, Annie Spratt and David Straight.