Taking A Look At Relationships With A Business Mindset

Relationships. They can make you or break you, but sure as hell, we must all go through them at some point in our lives. Though, the question remains: can we maximize on our intimate relationships, instead of turning them into shameful periods, which end up filling us with guilt and regret every so often?

Think with the right mindset

The saying goes that God gave men two heads, but only enough blood to run one of them at a time, and it cannot be better said given the great lengths guys go to in order to screw up every chance to turn a relationship into a profitable venture. It is true that millions of years have conditioned us as men to run after the woman with the right genetics and the attractive odds for reproduction, but in today’s society, beauty alone is not the primary factor that can enhance your relationship experience.

Most decisions the XY chromosome makes are not necessarily the best because what is crunching the numbers are not the neurons, but the overflowing hormones. What is concerning about this common practice is that we tend to undermine its power, until it strikes us hard down the path of failure.

How many great relationships have come to an end because we prioritized our temporary desire for flesh, while disregarding the feelings of our loved ones? How often do people shatter their professional record because they let their genitals dictate their fate? As Generation-Y, we have so much potential to bring on change and easily climb the ladder of achievements and glory, but we waste too many opportunities, kick ourselves out of so many networks because we can’t channel our energy into the right mindset.

This goes as well for relationships. Instead of investing our bodies and souls into making an attachment to someone bear positive results, we tear it apart piece by piece because all we care for is the pleasure and curves of a woman. Always remember that the sacrifice you make for a quickie can be worth a whole lot more!

Know when to cut loose

It is amazing how relationships are very much like stocks: sometimes you can get attached, even though it does nothing more than drag you down and cost you your money and time. It is of utmost importance to know how to spot a poor relationship and to cut it loose before it breaks you down. Some people tend to argue that you should do your best to save a broken relationship, even though you end up giving it too much for nothing in return.

This is what is commonly referred to as a sunk cost in economics. Never let what you invest in a relationship influence your decision to end it, believing that it’s unwise considering the amount you have to lose. The time, the money and the memories are all just sunk cost, which have had their time, made their impact and you cannot recover. Now is the moment to forget about it and just move on.

People in business understand the fatality of getting emotionally attached to a lost cause. Just because a business owner doesn’t want to lose the title of their business - as much as we don’t want to lose the title of being in a relationship - they will never continue pouring money until they reach bankruptcy. Maintain the thought process of an entrepreneur when thinking about your love life: if it sucks and isn’t destined for glory, close it down. Consider it a failure that taught you lessons learned, and move on your next venture.

Value feelings as much

Those who have read the two previous chapters might very well think that this is just another cold-blooded article attempting to classify relationships as just another business transaction, from a person who understands nothing about the importance of love, commitment and whatnot. Well, let me make it clear, when we talk about considering a relationship as a business venture that ought to bring you profit and empower you as an individual, it also includes the nonmaterial gains you win from a relationship.

Don’t view your partner as an ATM machine that has to spit money in front of you, or like a candy shop that has to draw profit, nor should you see a commitment like an agent who’s responsible for landing you that interview or internship in order to move forward on your professional path. Feelings and emotions are as important as the material gains you receive from being partnered with someone because they are easily translated into financial advantages when looking at them from a certain perspective.

Consider this: if you are more productive after a wild night, that’s a gain from having a partner to mess around with. If having someone there to vent your problems and issues to be an advantage in releasing your negative emotions, then that’s another bright side to being in a relationship. If your need a partner to keep you showing off that killer smile which brings you compliant clients and satisfied customers, then that’s something to take note of.

Your state of mind, your lifestyle and your confidence are all variables that are shaped and influenced by your other half. If your partner provides you the right frame of mind that helps you be a better person in all aspects of life, stick to the relationship and value it. If it were visible in monetary form, it would mean a great deal of money for you.

The other half is 50 percent of your personal brand

A partner in a relationship is more than just another person. Relationships don’t simply satisfy you, they shape you. Maybe you don’t realize how influential your partner is on your life, but imagine the way you speak, work, dress and behave. All that you do and all that you are is heavily influenced by your other half. Again, looking at it from a business perspective, relationships are like a merger. You don’t want to share your offices, products and ultimately, your brand, with a corporation that will stain the reputation you have worked so hard to establish.

In other words, don’t settle for a partner who will drag you back from your true potential. If you are the type of person to place a great importance on your networks and social circles, then don’t go for someone who isn’t willing to expand their own social circle, or who isn’t the type of person you will be proud to show off to yours. However attractive he or she is, if your partner can’t keep up with your lifestyle and personal ambitions, then don’t allow them to get settled into your life. Clashing beliefs, values and lifestyles will lead to resentment of one another and a resulting destructive relationship.

As Generation-Y, is it time we start attributing a great deal of our attention to the types of relationships we seek to immerse ourselves in. Right now, we are collectively treating the idea of a relationship as a pastime, which is an opportunity for short-lived fun that often results in long-term destruction on our personal growth. Relationships are meant to be springboards that benefit both partners, not as a temporary affair of risky playtime that we live through and forget as soon as the next prospect passes by.

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