10.0 Building a Relationship

10.1 What is "Building a Relationship"?

A relationship, a personalized definition, stretches from the basic rule of a party having communicated to another. A party may form a simple relationship or even the most complex, which is dependant on the intention of both parties. There are varieties of form of relationship and such are for the workplace, neighbours, classmates, partners, alumnus, and the list goes on. Here, we will look into the general basics, and that is: How can we build a good relationship?

10.2 The Two Elements of Communication

A simple relationship can be built by anyone with just an element of communication that is either verbal or non-verbal. A good relationship though, on a different level, is built by accounting both elements.

10.2.1 Verbal Communication

Verbal communication basically is a form of communication through speech. It is a form of communication that is comprehended by our sense of hearing. Nonetheless, we have stretched the limitation of its understandability to various means. In an instance, an individual who is deaf would be able to understand another's speech through lip-reading. As for a good presenter, he/ she would employ using various tones in transmitting his/ her message in order to grab the audience's attention. Tech-savvy individuals use various mediums to capture the audience's attention that is by employing, for example, audio effects and enhancers. At core, verbal communication is the simplest and widely used in communicating. Food for thought: Does verbal communication transmit more message than non-verbal communication?
10.2.2 Non-verbal Communication

Non-verbal communication basically is a form of communication through cues of action. It is a communication that is comprehended by our sense of vision and touch. The possible way to understand this rich-information communication is to learn and understand body language cues, and it is the psychologist and alike who are best at this. One fundamental rule to be mindful though is that the interpretation of non-verbal cues differ to each country. In Japan for instance, tilting the head to the side may be interpreted as an individual in wonder, whereas in general it may be interpreted as an individual having interest in a subject. Here is a question: How can we understand body language cues? The keys are experience and observation.

Wrapping up this topic, I personally recommend readers to read the book "The Definitive Book of Body Language" by Allan and Barbara Pease. It is a very insightful book on understanding body language cues.

I hope this topic benefits you as much as it has benefited myself, wa la hawla wa la kuwatta ila billah. Insha'Allah, the next topic will be posted in the near future.