With out a doubt you should be able to write about whatever your little heart desires on your blog. After all, it is your blog. Just because you are an expert communicator when it comes to both sending and receiving a message, doesn't mean the person on the other end is. A big part of successful communication that isn't really touched upon in any college course is how to handle the people on the other end who suck at communication. I mean, you really have to watch out for those people who attempt to communicate based on topics that they don't have enough knowledge on to talk about or they speak out of haste because they believe so firmly on a matter that they will just say anything and everything even if it means making themselves sound like an idiot or outright ignorant just to defend their stance.
So, I think it's just as important to learn how to keep an open mind as it is to learn how to effectively communicate. I've come to the realization that there aren't too many topics that you can state your perspective on without someone flying off the handle. What really urged me to write about this topic was right after the events happened in Ferguson. Why can't people respectfully agree to disagree anymore? I'm a very open minded person. I could very well be completely for or completely against something, but after having heard someone else's point of view on the matter, there is potential for me to be swayed another way. If anything, it's a learning experience.
People will end relationships over topics that could be considered debatable.
The top 5 topics of all time that are debatable are as follows (no particular order):
- Politics
- Religion
- Racism
- Sexism
- Parenting
Communicating via social media is one of the weakest channels of communication and for good reason. When you read something off the internet whether it be a Facebook message or status, e-mail, or someone's blog, it can often be very difficult to interpret another person's message as they originally intended it to be. Reason being is that tone and body language are also a very big part of communication that obvious lacks without a person being physically in your presence during the time that the communication is being attempted.
Like I previously mentioned, just because you're an expert communicator, doesn't mean the other person is. Even though it's not my job, I always try to compensate for the other person who isn't as well of a communicator as me. I will read something over a few times and analyze it from every angle before I reach my conclusion of what they're trying to communicate as accurately as I possibly can. When in doubt, the best thing to do in the event that you don't understand what someone is saying is to ask them for clarification. You should never really try to assume what a person is saying if you don't truly, for sure understand.
Depending on what kind of relationship you have with that person, it can land you in a position that you don't want to find yourself in; termination of a job, ending a friendship, getting a divorce, etc.
I think really no matter what you write or talk about, people live to put people down and shove their perspectives in other peoples faces. It has become the American way of life.
In conclusion, I think that the best thing to do is to continue to voice your opinions, but do so as clearly and respectfully as you possibly can. You should always respect the opinions of others, even if you don't agree with them. Everyone has entitlement to voice their opinions. If you quit exercising your right to voice your opinions out of fear of whether or not you will be criticized, you will just become another silenced soul. The way I see it, you can't please everyone for one. If the other person is that simple minded to let something so minuscule such as an opinion to come between the two of you, that's their problem. In the event that should happen, it sounds to me like they weren't a genuine connection to begin with.
People who value their connection with you will appreciate the bigger picture and see beyond the small things.
On an ending note, always stay true to yourself and everything else around you will find its place.
Long post but I read it to the end! You're so right. What I loved most was your comment on analysing someone's words from every angle, trying to understand what they meant. I think if people were to take other's into consideration and truly try to listen and understand what they're saying, we'd have less lack of communication and better relationships.
ReplyDeleteGood post!
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