An exceptional relationship requires vulnerability and understanding internal and external signals.
Exercising agency and making choices empowers individuals and enhances relationships.
Deep dives
Building Exceptional Relationships in Business
An exceptional relationship is one in which both parties can be vulnerable and fully known by each other. It requires building the capacity to understand both internal and external signals. Other key takeaways include taking the risk of allowing oneself to be known, updating beliefs about what makes one effective as a leader, and treating every interaction as a learning opportunity.
The Importance of Agency and Choice in Building Relationships
Having agency and exercising choice plays a significant role in building relationships. It empowers individuals to be active participants and takes away the feeling of helplessness. By owning one's choices, it leads to self-reflection, further exploration, and providing more freedom in the relationship.
The Power of Disclosure and Giving Feedback
Disclosure is crucial in building stronger relationships. Not allowing oneself to be known can lead to misunderstandings and less meaningful connections. Safe ways to disclose include taking calculated risks, gradually building trust in concentric circles, and sharing feelings as a powerful tool for communication. Feedback is seen as a gift, a crucial form of communication that helps us learn and improve relationship dynamics.
Recognizing the importance of forging connections with others — and learning how to build those bonds in real time — is the focus of a course that’s been the most popular elective at Stanford GSB for decades: Interpersonal Dynamics. The iconic course has taught thousands of students and professionals what it means to have exceptional relationships and how to interact with others in a way that contributes to deeper, stronger connections.
In this episode of Think Fast, Talk Smart, lecturer and podcast host Matt Abrahams sits down with David Bradford and Carole Robin, lecturer and former lecturer of iconic Stanford GSB class Interpersonal Dynamics to discuss their new book, Connect: Building Exceptional Relationships with Family, Friends, and Colleagues. Both lecturers in leadership, Bradford and Robin outline what they’ve been teaching in the classroom for a broader audience.