Love Languages
“Put all your energy into love, and the love that comes back will restore your energy.”
Is there anything in the world that is more comforting, reassuring, and kind than showing someone love and receiving love in return? I can’t think of a single more important thing to focus my energy on. Far outweighing business and fun, love is a category all it’s own. Focusing on it, even acknowledging it, can drastically help with all areas of life.
How often do you apply love to your business? First think about clients. Most of us have heard of the five love languages – if you haven’t, it’s a quick study. Think about how you like to receive love, and think also about how you like to give love. What makes you feel most safe and fulfilled? How do you know that someone cares about you? Once you understand the five love languages, you are better prepared to face business.
Clients are people just like you or me. They want that extra feeling of security and, ultimately, love when they invest in a business. Therefore, it is up to us business owners to give it. One way is to understand how you best give love and use that more in your business. If you give love by giving gifts, figure out an extra special something to include in each sale you make. If you give love by words of encouragement, perhaps write a note to the person who is investing in your business.
Or, take it one step further, and see how you can incorporate more than one love language into your sales. Figure out how to show someone you appreciate them by showing them love.
What is your love language? How do you like to receive love? What makes you feel most secure and happy?
How do you give love? Is that different from how you like to receive it? Do the people in your life tend to fall into one category or another?
What practical steps can you take to show more love to those who make your life possible?
For me, it is not just about business but about my personal life. I have a terrible tendency to focus so much on what my dreams are that I neglect the people closest to me. I have been making a sincere effort to analyze those around me and understand how they like to receive love, and then give it – not in grand gestures, but in everyday ways that make life a little bit sweeter. And what I find, in return, is that the people around me are just a little bit happier, and I am too.
6 thoughts on “Love Languages”
My main love language is Words of Encouragement but my husbands main love language is Acts of Service. I have to continually remember not to just tell him how much he means to me but to do little things for him that show him and in return he tells me how much I mean to him. It’s a win-win. I think that like our partners and business acquaintances, we tend to forget that our children are also people with a love language of their own. Once I figured that out and began addressing each of the children with things that met their individual need, I got lots more respect and reciprocation from them. Thanks for the reminder.
No Brooke! There is nothing more comforting than give love to something or someone. I can not live any other way. I love to love and be loved, but mostly give love, whom I love, at my friends, to photography and give love to my life.
When I give love, I try to understand how the other side would like to receive. I think it depends a lot on who is on the other side and the circumstances. If by words, gestures, be present, receive gifts… The important it is to give love.
In receive love, I do not have a favorite way. I am Already glad to receive the love. However, I think the presence, being present with time, has a slight edge. Oh! And in the case of someone we love, being present with an lovely look and smile.
Given love at my daily professional live is more the act of service. Outside my professional environment is this more quality time physical touch and words of affirmation. I like to receive love via hugs, spends time together, and via words of affirmation this helps me to come out the black tunnel So the sense of aloneness is disappeared and feel more secure . Practical steps to given more love to others is sometime to listen carefully to other what they expect and given the love/feedback that they need the most. So they get every day energy in life.
I just took the quiz and emailed it to my husband. I think I’ll know the answer to his. Once I get the answer, I will need to compare it to how I actually respond…
Words of Affirmation are the ways I feel most loved, probably stemming from some bad experiences when I was younger that have unfortunately stuck with me. Quality Time and Acts of Service were both very close runners up too. Those tend to be the way I show love, which I never realized until now, so thanks for sharing that link!
When my husband and I went through some hard struggles someone had reccomended this book to us. It was funny because I had gotten it as a wedding gift three years prior but never read it. Boy, did I wish I had. It really opened my eyes to one aspect that I was missing in our marriage relationship.
My husband’s love language is Quality Time. He loves to have real conversations and to do things as a couple. But with his work schedule at the time, and a newborn I struggled to give him that attention. I thought I was showing him how I loved him by doing all the other love languages except the very one he needed to feel fulfilled. This book and relization was my “aha” moment. Which helped to change things around for my perspective.
However, because of the particular events that occurred between us, my love languages were shattered and yet were also were way more pronounced than I ever thought was possible. (Mine are Words of Affirmation & Physical Touch.) I found that depending on my emotions of the day or week or whatever one would play more of a role than the other. This book was the first step to mending our relationship and better understanding eachother….along with loving eachother in a deeper way than we thought possible. Besides communication, these aspects we both needed to work on and continue to work on to this day.
When I know of friends going through things, this is one of the books I recommend if they already don’t know about it. Not only can this book apply in a marriage but it can apply in any relationship, which is just amazing!!! Thanks you sharing Brooke
i am most definitely words of affirmation – which makes it hard when i seem to be the only one AFFIRMING myself. But that is my fault for expecting someone to “love” me the way I want to recieve love. I don’t know what my hubby’s is….but i have a guess it is acts of service…because he has this thing about to-do lists and things wanting to be DONE. etc.
Another great eye opening test for me was the Life Languages. I learned how being a responder has really opened my eyes about how i RESPOND to my environment, people, scenarios. If anyone is interested in checking that out as well…i highly recommend it. It was another life-changing moment. 🙂
https://www.lifelanguages.com/life-languages
either way, i’ve found there is power in knowing yourself better….it helps immensely!!! 🙂