Relationships are important in our lives. Healthy relationships are ultimately what is most valuable in life. Developing healthy, nurtured loving and caring relationships and friendships are one of the most fulfilling gifts you can have in your life. Developing healthy relationships is essential. It's about people. It's about caring, commitment, loyalty, love. It's what you remember and want to restore at the end of your life. A beautiful relationship can bring untold love, appreciation, joy and ecstasy. On the other hand, a broken relationship with someone dear can bring untold misery and pain. Sydney Smith has put it aptly: " Life is to be fortified with many friendships. To love and be loved is the greatest happiness of existence"

Here are 6 ingredients for healthy relationships that we should strive to develop in every relationship, especially those close to us, our close friends, buddies, colleagues and even business relationships.

1. Acceptance, Empathy and Respect for the Other Person. Essentially, it is love. Love is much deeper than a feeling. Love is a commitment we make to people to always treat that person right and honorably. To understand and accept the other person as he is.

2. Fulfilling of needs. "You can have everything you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want out of life." A healthy relationship helps meets needs. We serve ? and get in return ?without consciously and eagerly expecting, of course. It will come- mutually and naturally.

3.Open and honest communication. " Communication is to relationships what breath is to life" The key to communicating is to be a good listener, have something good to say and express yourself well. Project warmth,, empathy and caring. By letting the other person know what we think and feel, it lets us connect with the other person. It enables us to make a connection. Both listening effectively and communicating what we feel is essential.

4.Stickiness- Patience and Loyalty. We are humans and humans make mistakes after all. And it takes time to change. Often, those who give up on relationships too early or because the other person isn't perfect, often forget that their next friend, their next spouse or business partner, will not be perfect either! Those who have experienced major turmoil in their relationships and endured with patience have emerged stronger after the crisis.

5. A Common Purpose. Working together, building together, failing and succeeding together ? while pursuing a common purpose - that is what relationships are made of. " To associate with other like minded people in small purposeful group is for the great majority of men a women a source of profound psychological satisfaction" Aldous Huxley Find people with whom you have common purposes with. In your current relationships, find a common purpose to look forward to. It will gel and create long lasting joy and benefits.

6. Fun. Fun brings enjoyment to the relationship. This is often forgotten or neglected in our family and spouses. Especially when we take the relationship for granted. We have to remember to consciously create fun situations and moments that we will remember with amusement and gratitude for a long time. Like family fun time and special moments together?

Having and developing all these takes time. But it is the most rewarding activity one can have. You'll not regret and be ever so grateful you did at the end.