The DNA of Relationships (Smalley Franchise Products)

About the Author Gary Smalley is one of the country's best known authors and speakers on family relationships. He is the author and co-author of 16 best-selling, award-winning books along with several popular films and videos. He has spent over 30 years learning, teaching, and counseling. Gary has personally interviewed hundreds of singles and couples and has surveyed thousands of people at his seminars asking two questions: What is it that strengthens your relationships and what weakens them?Gary and his wife, Norma, have been married for 40 years and live in Branson, Missouri. They have three children, Kari, Greg and Michael, and six grandchildren. ?Life is relationships; the rest is just details.? We are designed for relationships, yet they often bring us pain. In this paradigm-shifting book, Dr. Gary Smalley unravels the DNA of relationships: We are made for three great relationships?with God, others, and ourselves?and all relationships involve choice. Gary exposes a destructive relationship dance that characterizes nearly every relationship conflict, and he offers five new dance steps that will revolutionize relationships. The DNA of Relationships, the cornerstone book in Gary Smalley's relationship campaign, will help you learn to take personal responsibility, create a safe environment, keep their battery charged, listen with the heart, and adopt a no-losers policy. It will revolutionize your marriage, family, friendships, and work relationships! From the Back Cover Have you ever felt as if you're . . . Repeating the Same Mistakes in Your Relationships? Dr. Gary Smalley tells you the whys and hows of relationships-and how to break frustrating relationship dances. Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. The DNA of RelationshipsBy Gary SmalleyTyndale House PublishersCopyright © 2007Gary SmalleyAll right reserved.ISBN: 9780842355322Chapter OneA RELATIONSHIP REVOLUTION LIFE I S RELATIONSHIPS; THE REST I S JUST DETAILS. THIS I S THE GREATEST TRUTH. EVERYTHING IN LIFE THAT TRULY MATTERS CAN BE BOILED DOWN TO RELATIONSHIPS. Almost everything we do touches a relationship in some way. Just think about your day. Whether you're at home or at work, driving your car, playing, exercising, shopping, vacationing, worshipping at church, or doing any one of the many activities you and I do everyday, we are constantly involved with people. We even interact with people in our sleep. There is no escaping relationships. That is why for the past thirty-five years, I have felt passionate about helping couples, families, and individuals to strengthen, deepen, and enrich their most important relationships. That is what God has called me to do. In this quest to improve relationships, I am always searching for what works and identifying what doesn't work. I love to take relationship theories, apply them to my own relationships, and see if they work for me personally. It makes no difference to me if I make the discovery on my own or if the new relationship idea comes from someone else. I'm always hunting. So for three and a half decades I have traveled all over the world, delivering my message about how to improve relationships. Everywhere I go, I meet people who tell me that one of my conferences or one of my videos or books has helped save their marriage or improve their friendships or reconnect with family members. I feel deeply humbled and grateful for each of these encouraging reports. Yet I also frequently hear something not quite so thrilling. Many people take me aside to say, "I watched your videos-but I lost my marriage." Or, "I read your book-but my wife still left me." Or, "I tried your material-but things just didn't work out." Whenever I hear stories like these, a deep sadness fills my heart. I know my message has helped a lot of people, but I also know it hasn't helped everyone. That's why I'm constantly on the lookout for anything that really works for th