“It’s genuinely maddening (though sadly no longer surprising) that the moment I ask for an honest, open conversation is so often the moment where the other person stops responding.”
That’s because they were never interested in a conversation in the first place. A conversation is a two-way street: it involves listening as well as speaking,…
“It’s genuinely maddening (though sadly no longer surprising) that the moment I ask for an honest, open conversation is so often the moment where the other person stops responding.”
That’s because they were never interested in a conversation in the first place. A conversation is a two-way street: it involves listening as well as speaking, and responding to the other person’s views instead of just proclaiming your own. When people tell you “we need to have a conversation about [name your issue],” too often what they really mean is “I want you to shut up and listen while I hold forth on [issue].” Our public “conversation” consists of everybody talking and nobody listening.
“It’s genuinely maddening (though sadly no longer surprising) that the moment I ask for an honest, open conversation is so often the moment where the other person stops responding.”
That’s because they were never interested in a conversation in the first place. A conversation is a two-way street: it involves listening as well as speaking, and responding to the other person’s views instead of just proclaiming your own. When people tell you “we need to have a conversation about [name your issue],” too often what they really mean is “I want you to shut up and listen while I hold forth on [issue].” Our public “conversation” consists of everybody talking and nobody listening.
"That’s because they were never interested in a conversation in the first place"
Yeah, absolutely. This, sadly, nails it.