How To Have The Hard Conversations With Your Family

From time to time, we must discuss the tough topics with those we love in order to make sure we live healthy and proactive lives. For instance, talking to our late teenagers about what to expect and avoid when heading to university is important, as the social dynamics (and peer pressures) will be much different to anything that they may have encountered in their hometown thus far.

If you feel that your relationship has been a little less dynamic and supportive lately, having that tough discussion with your partner rather than letting animosity build can help bind you together more strongly, giving you both the space to address the issue. And of course, sometimes, discussing what to do in difficult situations, while tough, can be a great way of establishing a sense of security and calm should a difficult life event take place. For instance, learning ‘what is a will?’ and discussing what you’ve put in it with your family can help you, and while that topic is tough to approach, doing so is so much more important than leaving it undone.

With that in mind, we’d like to help you consider the following advice:

Give Yourself Time To Speak Together, Use A ‘Talking Pillow’

It’s good to separate the space in your home to talk, instead of speaking over one another as you’re getting ready for the day. Sitting down together for a pre-determined amount of time and using an impetus like a ‘talking pillow’ to grant speaking rights to whoever holds it can be important. This way, you can get everyone’s take, and everyone will feel as if they have contributed.

Don’t Shy From Tough Questions

There are many tough questions involved in family life. Perhaps you need to downsize your living arrangements now that you left your job for another industry, or maybe it turns out that your expectations of being pregnant with one child has apparently led you to possibly having triplets. That can take some adjustment to understand. Allow everyone to speak and have their say, and to ask questions that might be considered intense elsewhere. This can be your space to keep everything confidential and respectful – which is a good idea to curate because sometimes, those topics can be hard to tough on with courtesy unless you feel you have room to do so.

Set Goals For The Meeting & Don’t Deviate

If talking about a tough topic, like the fact that one of your parents has been behaving quite badly during a home visit and you wish to confront your partner about it, make sure that you set goals for the meetings so that you don’t deviate. This way, a minor disagreement can avoid becoming a major argument or discussion where the root cause of the problem isn’t solved. Writing your goals down beforehand will help you stick to the topic at hand.

With this advice, you’re sure to effectively curate those hard conversations with your family.