Most of life's problems are interpersonal problems. Or, problems between two people. These days, people tend to take a very selfish approach to overcoming interpersonal problems, focusing on their own needs rather than the other party's needs. Much of this selfishness has been influenced by self-help experts, coaches and gurus urging those paying for their services to speak up, "choose yourself", set strict boundaries, say no, etc. This advice is good in certain situations but certainly not all situations. More times than not, overcoming interpersonal problems involves a degree of selflessness. You must get outside yourself and seek to understand the other person. Furthermore, you should seek to give the person what they want, within reason. If you can learn to swallow your pride and appeal to another person's self-interest, it's astonishing how quickly interpersonal relationships vanish. This doesn't mean becoming a doormat. It just means being thoughtful about the instances where you can place another individual's needs above your own without massively inconveniencing yourself. Most interpersonal problems exist because of ego exhibited by one or both parties.