The Richly or Poorly Show
Show Transcript
shdawson-20260901.mp3
Episode 09/01/2026
09/01/2026
Hello! Welcome to The Richly or Poorly Show!
My name is Dr. Stephen Dawson, and I am your show host.
Thank you for joining me.
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The show's motto is unmistakable: RICHLY IS GOODLY!
Please consider how you define the term good as we journey through life together in your pursuit of defining the term richly in your life.
Last week, I continued to present on the topic of relationships. I presented the sixth step in establishing a relationship: Determine Adjustments. I shared that the basis for a relationship is a longer duration than that of a team in a project. All team members have the relationship attribute. However, the starting point of formation for any relationship is different from that of forming a team. A team has a purpose to accomplish. A relationship has no purpose other than to relate as the events unfold through a set of individualized guided preferences. I invite you to review the Teaming series episodes of April 7th, 2026, through May 19th, 2026, as you see fit to better understand the episode I present to you today. It has taken several episodes to present relationships to you in preparation for presenting The Five Academic Skills Necessary for Success to you.
Today, I will conclude presenting on the topic of relationships. I will present the seventh step in establishing a relationship. This is the last episode in the relationship series.
The seventh step in establishing a relationship is: Determine Conclusion.
There are an infinite number of people who can decide your relationship is over. The only person you can control when deciding to end the relationship is you.
You have modified all you can in the relationship by accomplishing step six, Determine Adjustments.
You have changed all you can in the relationship by accomplishing step five, Determine Inputs-Processes-Outputs.
You have reformed your protective layer all you can in the relationship by accomplishing step four, Determine Boundaries.
You have altered the size all you can in the relationship by accomplishing step three, Determine Amount.
You have considered replacing the definition of the relationship by accomplishing step two, Determine Type.
You have reached the point where there is no longer profit derived from the relationship, as you have determined step one, Determine Value, is equal to zero. Do you expect you can have a relationship with anyone when you have no value in the relationship with that person?
Some of the barriers to concluding a relationship include forgiveness and forgetting an offense. There is great merit in forgiveness. It is a mature act to forget an offense when the offense is not immoral. Remember, morality is a result of ethics, which is a result of worldview.
An act such as theft could be seen as something that can be overlooked, should the theft be viewed as trivial. An act of assault is difficult to overcome in a relationship. An act of wilful deception is also difficult to overcome in a relationship.
The conclusion of a relationship is always heavy to experience. The tolerance level of either you, the other person, or both has somehow been exceeded. The relationship is over. If the relationship was pleasant, then it is a bittersweet ending. If the relationship was unpleasant, then it is a remorseful ending. Concluding a relationship is difficult for me to do, as I try so hard to love the people I relate to in life that I struggle to accomplish step seven. I often get stuck in step six. The key to success here for anyone is understanding clearly which form of love they are practicing in the relationship. Summarizing, there are four types of love: Physical, family, conditional, and unconditional. It is indeed possible to practice more than one type of love with a person. This aspect is defined in the second step in forming a relationship: Determine Type.
I published an article in 2021 on the love aspect of relationships. I invite you to visit shdawson DOT COM. Click on the Navigation button at the top of the web page and select Commentary. It is the article I published on April 8th, 2021. I invite you to read this article to better understand the episode I present to you today.
I have shared numerous times in the relationship series and in other episodes how I struggle with relationships being healthy.
Check out the webpage at shdawson DOT COM SLASH podcast. Please do this now. Scroll to Transcript Search Engine. Enter the term STRUGGLE in the search box. STRUGGLE is spelled S-T-R-U-G-G-L-E. Click the blue box with the magnifying glass icon on the right of the search box to search all show transcripts for the term STRUGGLE. You will see a window appear on your device displaying all show episodes that contain the term STRUGGLE. Click on one of the links in the search results to view the specific show episode transcript. You then have in front of you all of the show episodes where I address how a STRUGGLE causes you to live your life poorly, and how I offer you help to eliminate a STRUGGLE from your life.
So, a big question to you: Do you love me as a person helping you live your life more richly? Big news for you: I love you. You may be wondering how I love you. Here is my answer: Conditional love. I have conditional love for you for one reason: If you do not want to live your life more richly, then you and I need to seek out a different type of relationship.
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It would be deceptive of me to try to relate to you as a member of my intended show audience to do anything else but to accomplish the purpose of the show.
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Here is an example of how a relationship could start, exist, and end. I shared about Pavel Durov in the December 9th, 2025, episode. He is the CEO of the social messaging platform Telegram. He was born and raised in Russia. The government of Russia has decided recently that Durov is now aiding terrorism against Russia by supplying folks in Ukraine with Telegram user accounts. If convicted, he could face life in prison in Russia. So, the relationship between Durov and Russia is over in its current form and now has a new form. The form is one of violent vengeance. Durov did not end the relationship. The Russian government ended it for him. Russia is now paying bounty hunters to locate and capture Durov to bring him to Russia. Durov will spend the rest of his life hiding from the violence seeking his life.
Now, I have *NO* idea about the nature of the relationship with Durov and Russia, the evidence Russia has against Durov, and frankly, it is none of my business. I share the story of Durov and Russia with you now to illustrate how relationships could conclude. What I did not share with you yet is that Russia has been accused of using the social messaging platform called Telegram for years.
I state as concisely as I can to you that the seventh step in establishing a relationship, Determine Conclusion, is an absolute action. If there is no concern about concluding the relationship, then I struggle to believe there was a relationship in the first place. If only one person is aware that the relationship has concluded, then I struggle to believe there was a relationship in the first place. The conclusion of a relationship is a stated-clearly event having both verbal and nonverbal communication from both people in the relationship as it reaches the point of conclusion. The determining process of concluding a relationship is like the end of life. The conclusion of a relationship is like death.
I suggest you undertake forming a relationship by considering how step seven could occur for both you and the other person. Consider how you are willing to pay the price for the relationship concluding. Price, as in monetary, social, and perhaps the loss of other relationships you have as collateral damage from the conclusion of the first relationship. The entire premise of step seven is based on step one, Determine Value, but the proverbial rubber meets the road in a relationship in step two, Determine Type.
I have been fortunate to have many long-distance relationships over the years, both personal and professional, with the help of the Internet. The Internet has helped me greatly to accomplish step three, Determine Amount. It is difficult to be in a long-distance relationship without some significant in-person time, realized in step four, Determine Boundaries. The in-person time in a long-distance relationship is almost as precious as air to me when accomplishing step five, Determine Inputs-Processes-Outputs. I have driven and flown many miles over the years to be with those in my personal and professional long-distance relationships, trying to optimize step six, Determine Adjustments. If there is too much distance, then it is the same as having a neighbor next door who chooses not to have a relationship with me, and I am at step seven, Determine Conclusion. It is the mature person who realizes when a relationship has run its course. It is the wise person who then attempts to start again at step two, Determine Type, and sees where the future may take both of them as a realization of preserving step one, Determine Value.
I urge caution when considering concluding a relationship. Sometimes, it is not a relationship conclusion but a relationship pause. This is experienced when friends go through a geographical relocation experience, for example, or when a time of working together ends as one of them is going into retirement. I have friends I have not seen in decades. We have a call, and have a pleasant conversation as though we just saw one another a moment ago. Clearly, there were many forms of love in play with such a relationship. Clearly, the love was healthy. If it were an unhealthy combination of love, then I doubt we would be speaking again with such happiness.
Next week, we begin the series on The Five Academic Skills Necessary for Success. I will start the series with an episode to introduce the series and prepare you for the transformation experience. These five skills are based on, literally, everything I have presented to you since the beginning of The Richly or Poorly Show last December. It is crucial for your success in living your life more richly to have a good grasp of what I am presenting in each episode for you to benefit from The Five Academic Skills Necessary for Success.
Well, that's it for today.
RICHLY IS GOODLY!
Remember, the show episode transcripts await you on the podcast web page.
Remember, the show episode map web page awaits you so you can both find and enjoy a group of show episodes with ease.
Thank you for joining me for this episode of The Richly or Poorly Show!
I have enjoyed presenting to you today.
Until the next episode, I hope you will be safe and join me next week.
Until then.
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