Difficult Topics Need Civil Discourse

You’ve probably heard people say don’t discuss politics and religion at work or at large family gatherings.  Humbug!  Discuss things!  But geez, keep things civil.  Too often we become emotionally vested in “our” side of a topic and we become very intolerant of opposing views.  (And no, this is not unique to one side of the ideological aisle or the other.  We’re all guilty of it!)

Soooo, just stop with…

…the ‘holier than thou’ attitude!

…the passive-aggressive voice!

…the angry outbursts!

Take time to understand.  Yes, listen to whomever you’re debating with.  Listen to understand, not just to answer.  Understand the other person’s feelings, point of view, knowledge base, etc.

I had a friend say once, “I’d rather be educated [in this debate] than be ‘right’.”  He had his point of view, his understanding of the topic, his emotional attachment, but he wanted to understand why I felt the way I did. (Thanks for that teaching moment, Eddie.)