On many of my programmes I help delegates explore the power of using metaphor when communicating or supporting understanding. This is one of my favourite examples...
A person’s emotional being is like an ocean. The people in your life are separated into three different categories. You have the sailors: they won’t touch the water. They opt to stay inside the boat. These people are your acquaintances, or “surface” friends, and they never make it deep.
You then have the snorkellers. These are the friends who want to go deep, but don’t have the emotional capacity to carry the pressure and weight. If they make an attempt, they either drown or are forced to go back to the surface for oxygen.
Finally, let’s talk about the deep-sea divers. These are the people who stay with you through storms and violent waters, and they aren’t afraid to dive to the darkest parts of the ocean floor: they stay with you, in the water, through the worst times. They aren’t afraid to call you on your rubbish. They’re the people who are there for you no matter what happens.
We all need the third type of people in our lives.