Mindful Communication
How to talk so people might want to listen to you
Communication is the basis of all relationships and is probably the basis of all relationship failures. The main reason that my husband — David Hughes and I have such an amazingly close and happy marriage is because we can communicate, openly and honestly, and we totally understand each other. We are on the same page as it were. And when we are at odds we explore it with curiosity, and usually find ourselves closer than we might have originally thought. It matters. We are also able to agree to disagree without feeling threatened about our position not being ‘the right one’. There may be right and wrong on both sides but we each have the right to make that choice for ourselves. We never row at all, ever, and are still each other’s best friends after 27 yrs. We have developed a method of communicating that is non-confrontational, non-threatening, and thus there is nothing we can’t talk about, even with several challenging situations around us.
I have many close friends with whom I also feel similarly able to communicate honestly and without any stress or difficulty. We’re not always one the same page but we know how to get past it and not take it personally.
There are many people I have met in my life with whom I have felt there was a barrier to such open communication. There…
