“Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: ‘What! You too? I thought I was the only one.”

C.S. Lewis

Adversity serves to bring people together and common experiences are great equalizers and can be a catalyst for the deepening of relationships. This is such a unique time in that EVERYONE is impacted by an external event and at the same time the ability to share in those experiences and build relationships is limited by the necessity of social distance.

What could be such a transformational time in the building of friendships actually has had the opposite effect and can create loneliness and feelings of isolation. It is also easy to focus on the negative aspects and spend any and all time conversing with others about the detrimental impacts this has had on you and those that you love.

How do you both focus on the positive and build/enhance relationships with others? I suggest finding someone in your network, your circle of friends and associates and simply reaching out to say hello and let them know that they were on your mind. Create a positive tone by inserting a thought like this into your dialogue. “While there are plenty of negative things to focus on, one thing I have really enjoyed is……………. What positive experiences have you shared or observed?”

What if we all found the one thing that was positive from today and shared it with someone else? What if we all found the time to tell someone that they weren’t alone…