LANGUAGE
LANGUAGE
Language, communication and understanding are all part of the same circle. It's important to remember each one of us has his or her own language. Words, phrases, and subject matter needs to be qualified on an individual basis. Let me give a couple of examples:
Many times when I'm speaking about properly increasing gun regulation, a gun rights advocate will misconstrue and think that I am "anti-gun" ownership. That's one reason why I predicate my discussions on this subject by stating that I am in fact a gun rights advocate, however, I feel that it is important to use data points based on other industrialized nations and evaluate what they're doing so right that causes their gun related violence to be 600% less than it is in America. If it was 20% better, that could be just because of how the wind blows, but 600% better resonates with me.
Example number two: my significant other and I we're getting massage She told me that the massages were scheduled for 4 PM. And 4:30 PM. I initially assumed that meant we were having half hour massages and she was going first at 4 o'clock o'clock and I was going second at 4:30. We started to talk about what time we were going to have dinner and I suggested 530 or 6 o'clock thinking these were half hour massages, but actually they were one hour massages and her started at 4 o'clock and mine was at 4:30, ending at 5:30. She knew they were one hour massages, I thought they were half hour massages, so naturally I thought it would be easy to schedule dinner at 5:30 or 6 o'clock.
These are such great examples of simple communication errors between people. Many times we filter someone else's language through our understanding and in that process make some assumptions. Probably one of the greatest causes of disharmony.
So how do we solve this problem? Ask questions. Don't ever assume that someone understands what you said, or what you meant by what you said, and don't assume you understand what's someone else means by what they said. Putting a simple filter between the statement and the assumption would help and that filter is something so simple: do you mean X or Y ?
Just a thought....
Frank M. Laux, BS, DC
Chiropractic Physician
317. 881 - 33 33