“Show me your friend and I will tell you who you are”, “Birds of the same feathers flock together”. I am almost sure you have heard these statements before and they have proved to be right in many circumstances. There are numerous examples of friends who exhibit character traits and behaviours common to each other. In some cases, attitudes are developed to imitate and blend with a group of friends, just to earn their respect and a sense of belonging to the group.
Relationships are in different forms depending on the platform and avenues on which they were established. Family members, classmates, neighbours, business associates, emotional ties, etc; there are all sorts of relationships we could get involved in, which are healthy and necessary for normal growth and development in our society.
I am sure you have also heard people say “No man is an Island”. This places emphasis on the truth that we cannot exist in isolation; we need each other to survive and live successfully. We are interdependent beings, this is the reason we have different areas of strength and talents that complement each other; no one has it all.
The question is how have we managed our relationships purposefully to yield the fruits and benefits they are meant to bring? Take a careful glance at your relationships; social, business, academic, emotional, religious and so on, do you think they are achieving any purpose or you are just in it for the fun of it? What value are you adding to your relationships and vice versa? Meaningful relationships are focused from the onset, with clear-cut goals and equally shared responsibilities.
This article is not meant to cause you to cut off friends or other contacts, the focus is on helping you retrace steps and consciously build purpose driven relationships. The place you want to get to this year and beyond depends strongly on the type of relationships you have now and will build on your way. Building meaningful relationships does not happen by chance, it takes a conscious effort on your part and a positive response from the parties involved.
Visionary relationships will help you achieve your personal and organizational goals. Remember that everything you need has been given; but they will not be dropped from the atmosphere; they will come by the hands of someone, an organization, or a business opportunity. But if you are not conscious of the purpose and motivations from the foundations of forming relationships, you may not be able to enjoy the full benefits of that relationship.
I believe you have articulated your goals and desires for 2019 to an extent. The next step will be to identify meaningful relationship opportunities that will keep you on track and focused on achieving them. Even your New Year resolutions will be easier to keep if you develop meaningful relationships in the area of interest. I should mention here that there is no hard and fast rule or criteria to determine a meaningful relationship, because what we term meaningful is based on individual differences, perceptions and backgrounds.
So, the meaning in the relationship can only be determined by the parties involved. One thing is sure; the parties involved must have mutual understanding, no manipulations and a balanced spread of responsibilities. This entails a large amount of hard work and all parties must be committed to contribute their quota all the way.
Do not waste scarce resources on purposeless relationships. Invest your time, money, intellect and other resources on building relationships linked to your vision, goals, dreams, targets and plans.
