So, now I know something that I didn't know before but it does me little good. If I'm driving a vehicle that's affected by the powerlines, it's too late for me to do anything. I've already passed the exit (southbound) and have no breakdown lane in which I can safely stop. If I was driving a very tall vehicle that hadn't already hit the overhead highway signs, I could, quite literally, be toast.
It's important to remember that communication isn't just about the conveyance of information, even if we think that the information could be helpful. Good communication includes an awareness of context. A true fact, given in the wrong context, is worse than useless.
The other day, a friend of my wife was telling a story. The friend's mother had many bird feeders that attracted a wonderful variety of birds year-round. The mother passed away in the winter. The mother's neighbors kept the bird feeders filled through the cold season so that the birds that had relied on these feeders wouldn't go hungry.
"You know," I said, "birds don't really need to be fed year-round. There's plenty of food. When we feed them, we feed them for our own pleasure and convenience, not for their need."
My wife ever so gently kicked me under the table.
It seems that I was offering facts which a) just showed off that I knew something, and b) missed the whole point about a loving thing that the neighbors were doing in memory of their friend.
Good communication requires an awareness of the other's particular concerns at a particular time.
 |
| via Why Men Should Not Write Advice Columns | Daily Shite |
No comments:
Post a Comment