Some people may believe that a bad relationship is just an inevitable part of life. While it’s true that most of us have gone through a bad relationship at some point in our lives, failed relationships don’t have to be inevitable. There are all kinds of relationships out there, and each must be treated differently. A romantic relationship that’s gone sour is a different animal than a bad relationship with a co-worker, and each must be addressed in different ways. Any strained relationship, however, can make our lives uncomfortable, and should not be ignored or treated as something you are forced to live with.
A bad relationship with someone you work with can bring with it a number of issues. If the co-worker you can’t get along with has equal rank as you in your workplace, you can try solving things on your own or, in extreme cases, you can take the problem to your supervisor or to your HR department. Ideally, it would be preferable to work things through on your own if the disagreements are relatively minor. If the person you’re not getting along with is a superior, this is a more sensitive and delicate situation. Before jumping to conclusions, or placing blame, ask yourself if the relationship issues stem from workplace performance problems. Take a hard, honest look at your work performance to see if that could be the cause of the issue. If you are doing your job as expected of you, and if the problem really goes deeper or is a personal conflict, you may be forced to get help. Don’t let yourself be the victim of abuse, harassment, or discrimination. If necessary, talk a professional trained in workplace harassment issues or your human resources department before taking action.
If you have a habit of getting entangled in bad romantic relationships, again, look first at your own behavior in the relationship before accusing the other person. Any intimate relationship requires that both partners are equal. If there isn’t equality between the partners, this in itself could be the cause of the problem. Neither partner should ever be made to feel subservient or inferior. Nor should anyone be in the relationship against their will.
Occasionally, as a relationship lasts for a time, lovers start to take each other for granted or they drift away. While this is not a sign of a healthy relationship, it doesn’t mean that it’s necessarily the end. If both of you are willing to make the effort to work to improve things, the drifting can be reversed. Maybe you already broke up; perhaps a little distance and time apart can give you and your ex a different perspective on the situation. Use the time apart for serious reflection on what went wrong and what you could have done to prevent it. There may even be a chance that the reflection and effort to change could repair the relationship. Even if it doesn’t, use what you’ve learned to avoid the mistakes in your next relationship.