Improve Your Relationships by Doing This Daily

Think about all that you go through during your day. Are you really aware of what you encounter and who you interact with?

Like most, you probably get caught up and don’t necessarily make time to reflect. But, you should. And there’s an activity you can practice that will help you take a step back and accomplish this – and it will improve your relationships.

I’m talking about?keeping a reflective daily journal.

I recommend you?establish a routine?of journaling for at least five minutes a day. Write down your thoughts and insights about your interactions and discussions or really anything you may have been confronted with. This allows you to take a closer look at the relationships you build on a day-to-day basis and can be a very rewarding experience.

Why You Should Keep a Daily Journal

Writing in a journal enables a productive?networking mindset. Relationship building can become a successful habit! But you must adopt the right state of mind while reflecting on your daily actions.

Journaling puts your experiences in perspective. It helps to?reduce stress?as it increases your focus and offers a sense of empowerment. When you take a step back and are mindful of it, you become more cognizant of your associations and what you are doing—or not doing—to foster?healthy networks. As said by philosopher John Dewey: “We do not learn from experience… we learn from reflecting on experience.”

This practice makes you dive further into and brings clarity to the steps you’re taking in your approach to making connections. It also highlights?the networking goals?you have set for yourself, and the path you’re on to achieve them.

Take the time to dive deeper into the conversations you had or articles you read or the activities you completed. Think about what you encountered and?the possible value?that may come from it, especially?the potential benefits?that could be offered to others. Once you determine how worthy your experiences may be to someone else, you have the opportunity to nurture your connections by sharing your knowledge and?paying it forward.

Do This Exercise

I want you to perform this exercise: for two weeks designate five minutes a day to write in a journal. Contemplate your interactions and how your activities play a part in fostering your connections. Use the following examples during this daily reflection:

• What you read.?Did you come across interesting articles, books, or maybe a movie review someone in your network would benefit from knowing about?
• What you ate.?Were you lucky enough to enjoy an amazing meal or eat in a new restaurant you know a friend would love to try?
• Where you work.?What did you discuss with your colleague when getting coffee this morning or did anything significant happen during a meeting and how did you react to it?
• Where you play.?Has a friend told you about an upcoming fun vacation or do you have any particularly exciting plans to share with others?
• What made you smile.?Is there anything that made you laugh or put a smile on your face that you know someone in your network will also appreciate and find funny?

Once you write down what you actually experienced or the knowledge gained, think about who would most benefit from it in your networks.

It doesn’t necessarily need to be something tangible; it can be something simple as you heard a song that reminded you of them, which gives you a?reason to reconnect. Or take this opportunity to?incorporate the Gratitude Challenge?as you record and then share your appreciation for something specific that happened that day.

Now, take it a step further, and reach out to that person. Tell them about the song you heard or article you read and that you’re thinking of them. Here’s an example email you can send:

Hey Elizabeth!

I remember last we spoke you talked about how you were considering Hawaii as your next family vacation. I read this article today that made me think of you, as it focuses on all the fun things you and your kids can take advantage of. Here’s the link! <insert link>

Recently I’ve made a conscious effort to perform a daily reflection about how my day-to-day experiences may be of benefit to others. As soon as I saw this, I knew I had to share it! I hope you find it insightful.

After following this exercise of keeping a journal for two weeks this habit should hopefully be integrated into your daily routine. And it should be something you look forward to carrying out each day. We’ve also developed a guide to establish and improve your practice of journaling and help you incorporate it into your day-to-day schedule. You can?download it here!

As stated by Oprah Winfrey: “Keeping a journal will change your life in ways that you’d never imagine.” When you take a closer look, you become more aware of the amazing and stimulating knowledge you ascertain every day through your actions – and how this value may benefit you and your connections!