Speaking Your Mind

Speaking one’s mind is something a lot of us do our best to avoid in many situations. In some situations it is not the ‘correct’ thing to say, and in others we fear the other person may react adversely so we choose the safer path. The problem with the safer path is that it is a temporary illusion. A mirage of sorts, which leads us to believe that we can keep some things bottled up inside and they will not manifest themselves in some other form in the future. This is where a host of problems stem from, and then snowball into much more complicated issues. I have spoken about the importance of candor in your organization in the past. I think this concept has great implications outside your organization as well. Speaking one’s mind in many of the situations we face daily will not just help us sleep better at night, it will drastically reduce the stress and frustration factor in our lives.

Undoubtedly easier said that done! No one wants to be the one who says things without realizing or taking implications into account. However, I think a balance needs to be struck here. I do believe that often out of respect, as also due to some social graces and norms, we should not be saying everything that comes to our mind. There are however many exceptions to this rule! Particularly in relationships, be they business or personal, where not speaking your mind has the potential to create further complications down the road. It could be a situation where the other person is just not correctly understanding your point of view or position, and you continue to keep quiet just to keep the status quo. These are two very common scenarios that tend to lead to many sticky situations.

The rule of thumb should be, when you feel and think that speaking your mind can potentially benefit the relationship in the long term but with short term repercussions, you should go for it. How will you know when the time is appropriate ? You won’t….this comes with experience, and understanding such situations better. So if something is eating you up inside, there is no better time than now to do your best to resolve the issue.

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