It has taken me a lot of years to realize that I process things differently than other people. When I am wrestling through a topic or trying to figure something out, I have to talk it out. I have to say things out loud to get them to make sense.
There have been times when I say something out loud and I think, “That is t what I want at all. Where did that come from?” There are other times I hear it when I say it out loud and I think, “Wow. Did I just say what I think I said? That was good!”
I will pause a moment and express gratitude where it is due. My darling wife is responsible for helping me realize I process like this. We have been in several conversations over the years where I am telling her about something and I realize halfway through the conversation that I am confusing her or not making sense. Only recently I have added the phrase, “Let me talk this out for a minute.” When I say that she realizes I am working through what I am saying and it gives me time to get there.
Why do I say all of this? How many times in life have we heard one thing when the speaker really meant another? How many times have we been so close to understanding each other, but we’re just one step away from a breakthrough? I bet it happens all the time.
Communication doesn’t just happen. We have to work hard at it. We have to understand how to speak and help others understand how to speak to us. Communication is hard, but can be made so much easier with this step.
David Willis 