Photo credit: Joshua Earle

We all make mistakes. We screw up. We say and do things we regret, or we don’t do things we should have done. Maybe it’s that we didn’t step up, or show up, or lend an ear or a shoulder. And now, well, time has passed and it feels too awkward to say something. Maybe we feel we’ve moved on. Or, maybe we think the other person has moved on. So, we tell ourselves there’s no point. ..But, is that really true? Or, are we just rationalizing?

The reality is it’s still there. It’s the elephant in the room. No matter how much we want to pretend it’ doesn’t exist, it’s the tension in the air that still shades every interaction we have with this person. We want it to just go away. But how?  Well, one simple yet powerful sentence can do wonders.

Here it is. Ready?

“I’m sorry.“

That’s it.

Not, I’m sorry but. Not, I’m sorry that you’re upset. The real key here is not to qualify it, not to include a disclaimer and not to assign blame somewhere else. Just suck it up and offer a genuine I’m sorry and why you’re sorry.

It may not totally erase the past but it will go miles towards diffusing any lingering tension, relieving the stress in your relationship and repairing the damage! It’s that powerful. I’m not kidding! In fact, I would argue that it’s the only way.

So, be a hero and change a person’s life. Tell them you’re sorry. I bet you’ll both feel better.

This much I know.

xo