This Valentine's Day also make a vow to start bestowing true love on everyone and not just your beloved.

When we relate to one another we can only do so in one of 3 ways, according to Dr. Eric Berne who founded Transactional Analysis (TA). When we communicate, we do so by taking on either an adult, parent or child role.

The best way we can relate to one another is to be adult. Acting as a best friend to all that we meet, being highly supportive and encouraging of other individuals. Progressing them as well as us, in a totally reciprocal and loving way, as in our closest relationships. With true collaboration.

Unfortunately for the majority of us the only roles we seem to experience in life are that of the parent or child. Parental figures exist all over our society, not just within our immediate family and are inherited from previous generations, at home, at work or within our life in general.

We can all adopt the role. Seeking to control others, by way of being over nurturing or highly critical of how others choose to live their lives, leading to upset all round.

When on the receiving end we feel child like, suppressed, bullied or spoilt. We are very unhappy with life and seem as if we have nowhere to turn. There is a solution however. By understanding the TA model and how we all relate to it, endeavouring to conduct ourselves differently or being coached to do this. We can move all of our relationships into the more adult zone.

By correcting the imbalance of which we have lived our lives, we can start to find our true identity and begin to appreciate ourselves again for all that we are. So in turn we can start to love others in the same way, creating better relationships all round in the future.

When Tim and Jackie first came to see me wanting to put the heart back into the motoring business, I wondered what they meant by it.

I soon realised that actually their name was spelt Hart and not Heart, although I could already see the interesting play of words that could lie in any design work to be undertaken. They went on to explain that they were in the process of taking over a local garage and wanted a new brand image that would set them apart in the local car market.

The garage, had a new concept behind it intending initially to sell small cars primarily to the female and youth market. A husband and wife team, they were keen to give a strong corporate look to their new garage as well as wishing to stand out from the crowd. However, they thought their colour scheme was somewhat constrained by the vivid green paintwork that covered the majority of their showroom window frames.

Due to the high feminine influence in the product and the service, I introduced both silver and pink into the brand, created a yin yang type symbol to represent both husband and wife which could also be compared to the lower case b and g, of the brand name. Creating what I believed to be the perfect balance within the identity matching their entire ethos. Developing their identity more true to their nature.

Everybody has loved the brand and the green and pink stands out a mile in local advertising. Tim and Jackie have been very happy with the product, so much so that they have recently recommended me to others to do their identity too.

So in return I am introducing them to you, spreading the love around just in case you need a new car at this time of year, for your own particular Valentine. Of course placing some bio fuel in the diesel tank will go a long way to loving the planet too.

Thanks Tim and Jackie for your recommendation, you're obviously all Hart by name and all Heart by nature!!

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