What are the most important things in a new relationship?

Whether you have a new found friend, a new pet or you've joined a new team there are some very important things you need to keep in mind. All relationships need three important variables- trust, communication and loyalty. You have to be able to trust your new team to make decisions. You have to communicate and encourage your team to use their professional intuition and have faith that they will do what's needed. You need to be loyal to your team.

I'm thinking about when we first got Oreo, our dog. He was very shy at first. He needed to learn to trust us. We had to be consistent with him. We communicated kindly to him and gave him no surprises. He has been loyal to us ever since.

All of the above also applies to meeting new people, be it amicable friendships or even romantic ones. Relationships grow when you can trust the other person's words and actions. When communication comes naturally and not forced. You are loyal to them and they too are loyal to you.

This school year I've been assigned to support a new team and I held my first meeting with them today. It will take a little time to get to truly know each other, but I see the prize over the rainbow...new friendships. My other team has new members too- so it's a year of maintaining a positive rapport with old friends and building new ones with new friends.