Communication in the Family - I

We live in Information Age and communication is the moola mantra of relations with others in public life. Everyone from the chaaywala on the pavements to the CEO of the Corporate Organization works hard to improve their communication skills but forget all those tips and techniques when they enter their homes. Why does this happen?

Every one of us has a 'private face' that we wear at home and a 'public face' that we wear outside the home.We take it as our birth right and prerogative to behave “naturally” and not"hypocritically" when at home. We rarely stop to think about how this affects the family members and our relationship with them.

Relationships in the family are the most important bond in one's life. They provide meaning to our life and inspire us to reach higher levels of personal and professional success. Family members of all generations support us and help us to move forward and onwards. They protect us from loneliness and provide an oasis where we can be ourselves. "Being ourselves" does not mean that we show only our negative side. Effective Communication skills help to lubricate relationships and strengthen them while poor communication hurts people and breaks relationships isolating individuals.

The first step to improved communication in the family is to show that we are concerned about our family members. Here are a few tips to improve communication in the family.

• Address each other by relational titles like anna, bhaiyya etc.
• Cultivate patience and tranquility
• Yield when someone is angry
• Exhibit pleasant behaviour and personality
• Trust each other
• Co-operate with all family members
• Demonstrate empathy for each other
• Avoid retaliation when someone blames wrongly
• Avoid nagging
• Accede to elders and men