Are You Listening?

I have discovered, very much the hard way, that I don't always listen to people, even when I think I am. I may hear the words that they are saying, but my interpretation of the meaning of those words may be very different than that of the person speaking. Or I only hear part of what is being said because I particularly like those words, or I particularly don't like other words. Listening to and understanding what others are saying to you, I have learned, can be quite a difficult process. It's not as passive as most people seem to think.

With all that being said, after you have a conversation with someone, and you believe that they have really listened to the meaning of your words, you feel pretty good about yourself. Likewise, you can make others feel good about themselves by listening to and understanding their interpretation of the words. And so we have found AHA. AHA can come simply by really listening to what another person is saying and taking the time to understand it from their point of view. In this manner, you can both achieve AHA!

Sometimes I am truly amazed that humans are capable of having a relationship of any kind with other humans. We are all living in our own little world- some people think that they are the center of it; some people think that someone else is the center; some are out for no one but themselves; some bend over backwards for everyone else; some are friendly to everyone; some are friendly to no one. Each of us interpret everything in our own special way, and most of the time that interpretation is slightly different than anyone else's. The fact that we understand one another at all sometimes seems like a miracle.

As I said in the beginning, I have learned the hard way that other people don't interpret things the same as I do. It takes quite a bit of effort from both people in order to come to an agreement on what the meaning is behind the words. But once that agreement can be reached, both people can find AHA, which - I think - makes both people feel good about themselves. And that's something that everyone can appreciate!