Few things will pay you bigger dividends in life than the time and trouble you take to understand people and build relationships. As

Decide that People Are Worth the Effort:

people who do not forgive are hurting themselves much more than they're hurting others.

people who do not forgive are hurting themselves much more than they're hurting others. A person who possesses this characteristic and keeps score in relationships is a person who is emotionally wired to carry all the stress that goes with carrying grudges.

As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "Trust men and they will be true to you: treat them greatly and they will show themselves great.

leaders touch a heart before they ask for a hand.

When you meet someone new, after the introductions and initial pleasantries, don't hesitate. Dive in and ask to hear the person's story. You can do it any number of ways: you can flat-out ask, "What's your story?" You can request that he tell you about himself. You can ask where he is from or how he got into the field he's in. Use your own style.

Charles Schwab: Be friends with everybody. When you have friends you will know there is somebody who will stand by you. You know the old saying, that if you have a single enemy you will find him everywhere. It doesn't pay to make enemies. Lead the life that will make you kind and friendly to everyone about you, and you will be surprised what a happy life you will live.

The ability to connect with others begins with understanding the value of people.

Material handouts are a poor substitute for love and understanding. People don't need more things—they need more tenderness

If you desire to mine the gold of good intentions in others, then forgiveness is essential. And it's rarely a one-time thing. Civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. was right when he said, "Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a permanent attitude.

The unfortunate truth is that many of us, instead of offering total forgiveness, pray something like this Irish Prayer: May those who love us, love us; And those who don't love us May God turn their hearts; And if He doesn't turn their hearts, May He turn their ankles, So we'll know them by their limping.