It’s no secret that the Royal Brothers, Princes William and Harry, have a strained relationship. A new book, “Battle of the Brothers: William, Harry, and the inside story of a family of tumult,” by Robert Lacey, will in part reveal details of the brothers’ strained relationship.
Even though our problems with our siblings won’t be center-stage for the world to see, they will center-stage within our families. This got us thinking of ways to repair troubled relationships with our brothers and sisters.
Sibling relationships are difficult because siblings tend to get typecast like actors into certain roles, and that image doesn’t go away. When there are problems, it’s easy to fall back to how your sibling has always been vs. any personal growth over time. Everyone, including siblings, evolves as people. But siblings feel like they know each other well, and they ignore any new information. And they think, “they’ve always been this way or that way.”
Talking through problems can be difficult when siblings aren’t completely honest about what’s bothering them or how to fix the situation. Or, they don’t believe anything will change, so they throw in the towel and give up.
Before you say a word, think it through. What’s the goal of chatting? What do you want to happen? You know each other’s trigger points, so really try not to ignite any of them as you talk. Use “I” statements. Stick with facts, not emotion, when you speak. If you feel like the conversation isn’t going anywhere, then stop the conversation.
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