Communication is something that we do already, every day of our lives. We have gotten this far, so why learn how to do it better? To put it simply: having healthy relationships is a vital component of health and wellbeing. Research has shown that strong relationships lead to a long, healthy and active life. To have more healthy relationships we can continue improving our communication – which includes expressing clearly and also listening and empathizing to others.
There’s also a saying about successful people, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” Whatever profession you are in, if you can communicate well with others while you do your work, be they co-workers, clients, or managers – you will build more quality connections and your work will be more successful.
Learning how to communicate better also means that we can embrace conflict more easily. Conflict seems to come with life, with relationships, with people having different needs and viewpoints. Compassionate communication takes the view that conflict isn’t inherently bad or negative; rather, it is what comes naturally when people come together with different experiences.
Compassionate communication skills help you connect with others, build authentic relationships and even be OK with conflict. At the heart of compassionate communication is learning how to express and own your feelings and needs, while learning to empathize and value those of others.
We can learn to take value or moral judgment out of your day-to-day communication, so what you say doesn’t feel like accusation or criticism and still expresses what we honestly feel and need. Similarly, learning how to empathize and understand others’ perspectives helps build trust and authenticity in relationship. When the people around us know they matter, then they are also more open to listening to other viewpoints. In that way, compassionate communication mutually benefits everyone in a work, community or home environment.
Join Patrick in his upcoming
Compassionate Communication online course for hands-on compassionate communication practice and lots of resources to continue to draw on as you cultivate more quality connections in your life.
