While there isn't one thing in particular I can 'credit' for these realizations, I have been working on meditating daily. Simply sitting with awareness-- like I am trying to listen to a sound far away. Holding this sense of awareness for as long as I can, while being comfortable allowing thoughts to pass through without giving them unnecessary attention.
I think that this coupled with writing in my journal and engaging in deep conversations with the people in my life has been really beneficial to the process.
I get meditating and Journaling, but if you can indulge me a bit here, how do you pick someone to have deep conversation with? I know some people can be offended when you want to go deep with them, or they would just go with the usual "I don't know".
Good question about choosing who to interact with. i think the important thing to think about there is not necessarily who you choose to interact with, but how you choose to approach and engage in the interaction.
It can definitely be off-putting or 'uncomfortable' for some people to talk about ideas that are a bit foreign to them, so focusing on being very open-minded and using good listening skills is important.
Linguistically speaking, if you only share your opinions with the other people in the conversation, they might feel like their own viewpoints are not being considered. You can counter this effect by paying attention to the things they mention that you do agree with, reflecting these ideas back to them so that they can see you are coming from a place of support instead of a place of dominance.
These kinds of conversations are definitely necessary to help the whole world grow and adapt. I recently read a nice article by @udochi about respecting beliefs, and how we (as intellectual creatures) should be able to engage in these conversations-- even though they might be often seen as conversations to steer clear of.
People tend to fear talking politics, religion, etc, thinking it can only bring controvery. To this I might ask: how can we evolve and adapt if we stubbornly refuse the conversations around these subjects?
Being able to be open-minded and accepting of other's beliefs is very important, we cannot change the world, we can only change ourselves and hope these changes reflect in the people around us.
Thanks for asking this @maverickfoo, I love to be able to engage with these comments on steemit!
Wow, thanks for the engaging thoughts! Really!
Yes, I agree the method is sometimes more important that the content. A brilliant conversationalist once told me that if you just listen and ask good questions, you'd realised you don't need to know so much to begin with. Best part, at the end of the conversation, the other party will be so in love with you because you listened to them! Works well with the ladies, mind you. :)
Very agree. And here in Asia, we avoid "taboo" topics too like divorce, dropping out of school, drug usage, prostitution, same-sex marriages etc. And kids are left in the blur because they are just not exposed enough in those critical errors, causing them to made unnecessary attempts in the name of curiosity, only to be scarred for life at times.
A good conversationalist will be able to navigate through sensitive topics, ever mindful of the responses of the other party.
No wonder great communicators are always leaders, or the most in demand!
How did I just see this fantastic response?
I really have learned a lot from using that idea of listening and asking good questions. It seems like people a lot of time listen in order to say something back, not even necessarily to respond. By listening to what people have to say with an intention to find questions to ask to deeper your understanding, you move the conversation from being about yourself and your own topics to being about them. The difference is incredible, and can definitely be felt and appreciated by the other people in the conversation.
Plus, it allows such deeper dives into these conversations which are usually a bit more taboo. I was talking with a friend recently about how if we don't talk to children about these 'taboo' subjects they will end up trying to learn about them from whatever resources will let them, and that often leads down some poor paths.
Proper conscious engagement with these topics allows for conscientious decision making!
Thanks for your active engagement in the steemit community @maverickfoo