Building relationships is essential. Making sure we build strong relationships with our family, friends, and colleagues are crucial for us to have a meaningful life. For a combined 45 years, Professors Carole Robin, Ph.D., and David Bradford, Ph.D., taught how to break through superficial interactions, get real and create meaningful connections with people in every aspect of life through their course, Interpersonal Dynamics. In this episode of I Don’t Care, Host Kevin Stevenson talked with the dynamic duo about healthy relationships and their new book CONNECT: Building Exceptional Relationships with Family, Friends, & Colleagues. “It’s [the book] about creating more functional healthy relationships,” Robin said. Life is complicated, especially when it comes to relationships. There are many intricacies involved in making sure we maintain solid foundations with those around us. In their book, they talk about everything from expectations to conflict. They also dig in on the meaningfulness of taking a relationship from casual to something more profound. What they are doing seems to be working. Robin mentioned they get emails from students and former students lauding them with praise. “We get emails and phone calls from them saying ‘You saved my marriage,’” Robin said. There are a few big moments in the big book. One of those is called “Take Disclosure Risks.” In this, the authors explain how to tell someone something about yourself. This builds trust, and it doesn’t have to be a significant thing.