Mum and I are best friends. We couldn’t be closer. That’s what the Prudential Quiz I recently did told me. It said that we share an intimately close relationship, where everything can be freely expressed and shared, without restraint or prejudice. The results made me smile, because I love doing relationship quizzes, especially the ones that feel surprisingly accurate!

My Mum, and My Family
To me, my mum is the best mother in the world, and we are very close. We talk to each other almost everyday, we go out of our way for each other, we share the same interests (like the same tv shows and discuss them in full detail), and we do lots of stuff together. Mum has gotten me out of many a sticky situation, and she has been there during my darkest times — and I am proud to say I have always been there for her too.

I am the eldest of four children, which means I have to ‘share’ my mum, and my dad. We are a close knit family; and as all my siblings and I grew into adulthood and have our own lives, we have proven time and again that we will always stick up for one another. My mum has always been the heart of our family — she is the one who would worry, and call, and poke her head into everything we do (in a good way, of course). And while she is there for everyone — the only time I can have her all to myself is when we travel together.

Traveling with Mum
In the last few years, Mum and I have been on many mother-daughter vacations together. I decided that I want to bring her along on my travels, as it brings us so much closer. Of course, we have our differences too, but we always seem to work it out our way. So far, we have been to big cities, small towns, the beach, islands, and we plan to do more and more over the years. Just two of us, and a whole world of adventures we can take together.

To me, this is one of the things that matter most.

The Prudential Relationship Index
The Prudential Relationship Quiz (take it here) is a relationship quiz to measure your relationship status with a loved one; be it your parents, children, spouse, partner or even friends. It is to understand your state of relationships, churned out from a survey done by Prudential on a large scale with its inaugural Prudential Relationship Index (PRI), conducted in 2016 and 2017. It is a study to find out what matters most in personal relationships throughout Asia, as well as the individual’s needs and expectations.

The Prudential Relationship Index explores the state of relationships across Asia, in Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia. A score of 100 on the PRI indicates that a person’s primary relationships deliver 100% of what they want from that relationship. In the recent PRI 2017 survey, Malaysia scored 68/100. It is three points lower than the PRI score in 2016 that was 71/100. The survey also shows that Malaysia is ranked 6th out of the 9 countries that was surveyed.

In Malaysia, 516 interviews were conducted through the online sampling of adults between 25 and 55 years of age living in Kuala Lumpur or Petaling Jaya. You can find out more about the statistics and amazing insights into relationships here: https://www.prudentialrelationshipindex.com/my/.

But let’s touch on the primary relationships of those with parents. This has shown a drop in the scores over the last two years, at a score of 47% in 2017. So what are the most important attributes that we need from our parents, and how are we meeting these relationship needs?

Relationship with Parents
According to the PRI survey results, the most important attribute that Malaysians look for in their parents is for them to provide support; the top three being to stand up for them, to get along, and to respect their individuality. And I’m also surprised to see that the percentage for interactions with parents are quite low, with most being below 50%. From things like participating in activities with parents and regular conversations, to saving I love yous and having arguments — I believe it all stems down to how much effort we are willing to put in as well.

I am glad I have taken that first step to meet the needs of my parents first; and as they get older, to take the initiative to spend more time with them, talk to them, dote on them, and even talk to them about my life, my future, and my financial planning.

Financial Planning with Parents
Looking at the PRI survey results for key financial goals — my parents are pretty much like the masses. Saving for the future and their retirement has always been important in my parent’s books, but they never fallen short providing my siblings and I with proper education, and of course, instill the love of travel within me from a very young age.

My parents are pretty open about our family’s financial plans — and have constantly reminded me to plan my finances wisely and save for my retirement (something they have always practiced so as to not burden their kids). According to the PRI survey as well, most Malaysians (83%) are expecting to rely on supporting themselves during retirement — only 31% expect their children to support them, and 43% expect to still be working when they’re older.

What Matters to Malaysians?
Here are some interesting facts about the relationships of Malaysians that the Prudential Relationship Index 2017 has gathered:-

• 63% of Malaysians agree that the ability to make one laugh or smile is one of the most important attributes in a partner.
• Malaysian couples argue most about money, followed by being inattentive and spending too much time on gadgets.
• 85% of Malaysians think that mealtimes will improve if phones were switched off.
• 38% of Malaysian couples feel like they are competing with their partner’s phone.

To me, seems like our phones seems to be a common factor affecting relationships — and personally, I can’t agree more because I’m guilty too!

Where Are You in Your Relationships?
The Prudential Relationship Index helps us understand what makes relationships click, and how to make them better and more rewarding — because relationships are just so important to our happiness and our lives. The chart above shows us the three important pillars to a strong relationship, something that we can all learn a little from. Think you’ve got them all with a certain someone? Take the Relationship Quiz here and understand your bond a little bit more!

As for me, I’m glad that my relationship with my parents, especially my mum is great — and I want to improve it even more in time. My mum and I will definitely be talking more, spending lots of time with each other and traveling the world together for years to come!

To read the full Prudential Relationship Index report, you can download it here.

Mum and I bonding through our mother-daughter vacations.