Introduction
Friendship is an example of an interpersonal relationship that every normal being enjoys. Good friendship comes with a plethora of advantages include the enhancement of self-esteem, health, and the feeling of mutual love. The reason why friendship stands out of other relationships is the fact that it is an unlimited relationship that does not have boundaries. Secondly, there is no source of authority like in a parent-child relationship as each one of the parties regards the other as an equal party. Several types of friendships exist ranging from the youthful v mature and long-term v short-term friendships among others. Irrespective of the nature of friendship, the most important factor in this form of relationship is communication (Thompson, 2018). Developing an appropriate relationship sets the center-stage for the thriving of a friendship relationship between two individuals.
Background Information
Up to this point in my life, I have experienced many different types of friendships that have played a significant role in determining my personality. I remember my days as a teenager, I did not value friendship as much, and this landed me to many temporary friends whom I would enjoy playing time with. However, as I began maturing and developing into a young adult, my perception of friendship drastically changed. I developed several mature and stable relationships that hinged on trust, support, self-disclosure, and commitment. Currently, I am in a long-term friendship with one of my former high school classmates. The relationship has spanned now for almost six years, and although we are in different colleges, our communication has remained steadfast and frequent. There is a lot of chemistry and intimacy between the two of us, and one factor that has kept us going is the level of self-disclosure we employ. The self-disclosure has enabled us to keep our secrets and confide in each other regardless of the situation. AS opposed to doing-oriented, I would describe my friendship relationship as a being-oriented. We are not only joined by activities but by the fact that we are fond of each other’s company. Reflecting on the things we have done together such as helping one another financial or emotionally when things are not well, I would safely say that we are a high obligation friendship. Although I believe in having friends from opposite sex, my feeling is that having a friend from the same sex is easier because you tend to share a lot.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Strategies
One of the strategies that I employed in my friendship relationship is good listening skills. It is critically vital to appreciate the value of excellent listening skills in any relationship. Some of the critical areas where good listening skills can become essential include conflict resolution, solving a crisis, and in the overall strengthening of a relationship. In listening, one of the most discussed areas is on the active listening skills. Such a form of listening requires showing a deep sense of empathy, maintaining focus, and brainstorming (Adler, Rodman, & du Pré, 2017, pp. 135). Communication climate is an ideal situation that promotes the efficient exchange of messages in a relationship (Neubaum & Krämer, 2017).In listening to my friend, I ensure that I cut off all the potential distractors such as phones and electronics. I will also ensure that I pick an appropriate environment where focus can be guaranteed. Most fundamentally, I always ensure that I leverage on my nonverbal cues and expressions to such as eye contact and facing my friend to provide them with the much-needed assurance that I am listening. As a result, this bolsters the communication climate as my friend develops the perception that I am empathically attached to the problems or their side of the story in case of a conflict. When I implemented this strategy, the results were positive because I had created a platform that enabled my friend to express all the concerns and problems he had.
The second strategy that could improve my friendship relationship is the perception checking approach. It is an essential tool that would enable both of us to understand one another accurately rather than merely jumping into conclusions (Adler, Rodman, & du Pré, 2017 pp.36). It also prevents the prospect of thinking that one's idea or interpretation is the most appropriate one. It reduces the chances of the other person getting defensive since I would not be attacking them but instead seeking for clarification. It, therefore, enhances a favorable communication climate as it mitigates the probability of confrontation. Most fundamentally, it creates an ideal environment for exchange without necessarily suffering the effects of misunderstanding. Moreover, perception checking would enable both of us to think critically of the words and phrases and gauge the meaning without any bias. After a series of arguments with my friend over which political party had had the most significant impact in the country, we decided to employ perception checking in our discussion. The results were good because everyone remained aware of the other person's arguments without getting emotional.
The third strategy that we employed in our friendship relationship was conflict resolution. It is essential to appreciate that conflict is almost inevitable in any form of relationship. Conflict arises when a given party wishes to have their goals met (Adler, Rodman, & du Pré, 2017, pp.234). The creation of an effective communication climate requires a conflict resolution strategy where both parties compromise on their position. In this type of a situation, both parties are tantamount to lose part of what they wanted by sacrificing a section of their goals (Koda, 2018). Compromising fundamentally involves the act of both parties giving up something, and not just a single person. Conflict resolution is a strategy aimed at enhancing the overall good of a relationship. It requires each party to show a sense of sacrifice and commitment to solving the impending problem. When we recently had differences with my friend regarding the best place to go on vacation, we decided to implement compromise as an essential tenet for conflict resolution. I reneged on my wish to have a long trip, and he also compromised on his desire to have us travel by air. At the end of it, we had to focus on the common things that appealed to both of us. It created a positive communication climate where both of us had to take or give up the things that benefited our relationship.
How the Strategies Impacted the Relationship
Overall, the three strategies of listening skills, perception checking, and compromise had a significant impact on the general health of our relationship. We basically improved on three fundamental areas. First, the development of good listening skills improved our understanding and also the level of empathy we had for one another. Secondly, perception checking reduced misunderstanding and the prospect of conflict. Thirdly, the use of compromise enabled us to understand each other in times of disagreements.
Conclusion
Friendship is a special relationship that significantly differs from family or romantic attachments. Although friendship can take different fashions or styles, the overriding aspect is that it should be formed by the pillars of trust, honesty, and support amongst others. It is therefore essential to maintain a strong communication climate that enables the exchange of messages in times of happiness and crisis. The three strategies that could yield positive results and further enhance friendship in times of conflict include active listening, perceptive checking, and conflict resolution through compromise.
References
Adler, R. B., Rodman, G., & du Pré, A. (2017). Understanding human communication. Oxford University Press.
Koda, K. (2007). Reading and language learning: Crosslinguistic constraints on second language reading development. Language learning , 57 , 1-44.
Neubaum, G., & Krämer, N. C. (2017). Opinion climates in social media: Blending mass and interpersonal communication. Human Communication Research, 43(4), 464-476.
Thompson, N. (2018). Effective communication: a guide for the people professions. Macmillan International Higher Education.
