Spend this Christmas with your family and try to really be present and listen. Here are three tips that help you with listening:

With labeling you can create the conditions for more understanding, even in disagreement. You spot an emotion and state it out loud but neutral, i.e. labeling it, via saying "it seems like..." or "it sounds like..." Read on to find out more.

What I say is not what you hear and probably not at all what you understood. Communication usually needs two people, a sender and a receiver. The sender transmits a message. The receiver receives it. The problem lies in the difference between what the sender intends to say, says, and what the receiver hears and understands in the end.

Stable relationships can have a profound influence in supporting you to lead a healthy, happy, and, hence, longer life. How does your social network look at the moment? Who are the most important human beings in your life? How are your current relationships with them? The Relationship Map is a simple yet powerful exercise that helps you gain a clear overview of your connections and identify the most important relationships in your life.

Good relationships keep us happier and healthier. The Harvard Study of Adult Development found that relationships and how happy we are in our relationships have a powerful influence on our health.