Are Accountable and Healthy Relationships A Priority?

Are Accountable And Healthy Relationships A Priority?

Prioritizing our relationships is essential to a quality life. Yet many of us don’t know where to start. There aren’t enough hours in the day, something more urgent keeps coming up, or our plates are already full.

So how do we actually maintain the health of our relationships? Here are four ways to get started.

1) Creating a list of the most paramount people to you.

I know you think everyone is essential. But if that were true, they’d already be a priority instead of a passing thought. So make the list. Go from most vital to “I can do without.”

Once you’ve made an honest, straightforward list, look at the top four people. Where do you stand with them? Where do they stand with you? Are you planning time with them? Are you open about how you feel? Is the relationship as strong as it can be? If the answer is no to any of those, make it right.

Then take it further: ask your top four to make their list. See where you land on it. Ask them why you’re so high or so low. Start a dialogue that lets you both take inventory of the connection. It may bring you closer or push you apart — but either way, it grants you clarity.

2) Create a weekly schedule.

Every Sunday — or whatever day you choose — take an hour to look at your week and pencil people in. We aren’t teenagers anymore. We maintain the accountability and health of our relationships by planning our lives. Planning is prioritizing.

Anyone who feels restricted by a plan isn’t ready for commitment. A weekly schedule shows you where your time actually goes and makes you more dependable. When your friends know you’ll meet them at a set time, they can count on your presence in their lives. That doesn’t mean you can’t connect outside the schedule — it just reassures them that this is their time, and that you value them.

Building a schedule also lets us take control of our lives. We look forward to a week we can see laid out in front of us. And when we’re more satisfied, our relationships benefit from that positive energy.

3) Prioritizing your issues prioritizes your fun.

Think of it this way: issues are stop signs. You can’t go until they’re resolved. You can run the red light — but eventually there’s a crash. The better move is to stop, discuss, and see where you both stand. Our minds are not reality, so live out loud. When you prioritize your issues, you prioritize the Healthy and accountable relationships .And healthy, accountable relationships equal unadulterated fun.

4) Make Life Plans Together.

Bonds are vital to accountable and healthy relationships. So how do we build strong ones? Find a purpose in each other’s lives. Base the connection on something concrete and forward-moving — raising children, running an organization, exercising together. Anything that brings real value while honoring a commitment.

We’ve all joined ourselves to people because they shared our traumas, our vices, or were just something to do. How did that work out? For me, it was never productive or meaningful. When we’re ready for accountable and healthy relationships, we want the people connected to us to blossom. As we build those bonds, we start to see how we’re better together. Don’t settle for anything less than that mentality.