Ken Bechtel consciously didn’t know what was awaken within him when he was asked, and complied, to officiate the wedding of a couple of friends in the playground as a child. As for so many of us he resisted his calling for as long as possible until he ran out of excuses.
Today Ken is a highly acclaimed relationship mentor who helps people that are challenged by relationships to become better partners and help their partners to do the same. His typical clients have had forays into relationships already. As he describes, the younger generations are convinced they have it all figured out, i.e. they have to make their own attempts first before seeking advice.
We discussed how we can help improve the relationship skills of humanity before they get in to their relationships. Ken feels that working with parents to be the best parents and partners they can be, children will see how it is done and will try to emulate what they’ve seen, i.e. kids don’t do as you say, they do as you do. So, showing up as role models is the best way to perpetuate healthy relationship behaviours.
Ken used the metaphor of the rose many times in our discussion and it is very appropriate for many situations. From the nourishment of the rose to it’s bloom, the idea of the rose knowing its worth, the beauty of the rose distracting from the thorns, etc. Relationships take work from all parties and there is no “one-size-fits-all” type of relationship. However, we were in agreement that being self aware and dong “the work” on oneself and showing up with the approach of compassion, acceptance, forgiveness and gratitude is a great platform to start from. Of course, both partners would benefit from committing to the same platform. From this, believing one’s own lovability and ability to hear and willingness to engage and solve, will come natural and be an organic evolution of self.
If you want to work on your relationships, you can contact Ken at www.kenbechtel.com.