Conversation Torpedo: When You Are Caught Off-Guard and Rendered Speechless

Have you ever been talking to someone when the conversation went from good to WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED…WHERE IS THE CLOSEST EXIT?!

Do you struggle to find the right words, the best words, and sometimes any words in the middle of a heated conversation?

[Confrontation: Enemy #1]

I will stall and stammer and try my best to get the heck out of Dodge (a.k.a. the dreaded conversation torpedo), all the while thinking, “If only I had a few minutes to gather my thoughts and write up the perfect email, text, letter, etc. maybe I could leave with my dignity still intact.”

If my escape attempt is successful, I breathe a sigh of relief and waste no time writing my pithy notes. However, if I’m not so lucky, I will quickly begin to clam up, choking on my words only to find my once confident voice has now become stifled and nearly incoherent. My lack of words has left me defeated—just like that. Not because the other person is necessarily right but because I cannot successfully convey my point. Case closed. (Drats!)

What can one do if our words don’t flow out of our mouths as well as they flow from our fingers (besides kick ourselves and try our best to learn from it—yet again)? It helps me to write out my feelings and frustrations then fiercely crumple it up and throw—no, catapult—it into the trashcan (Venting 101).

In addition to being an immediate outlet for stress, journaling on a regular basis can give us the confidence we need to voice our opinions when we need it most. You know, that moment the phone rings, you see who is calling and—in spite of all your good sense—you answer it anyway.

“There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in storm.”

— Willa Cather

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