I Challenged Another Writer’s Perspective
And you should too
In my last article, I voiced my opinion that readers should challenge writer’s perspectives. Today, I took my own advice. As the reader, I found a sentence that I did not agree with, and I left a respectful comment stating why I did not agree with it.
I almost chickened out.
My self-doubt nearly got the best of me. This writer has 30k followers, he will never take me seriously, I thought to myself. Regardless, I said what I wanted to say, and it felt great. Here is the thing though, I thought it out first. It was not an impulsive comment. I did not let my emotions get the best of me.
So why am I encouraging you to challenge another perspective?
Because you can! Exercise your right to have a different opinion but be kind in doing so. Humanity is far too divided right now and I’m not telling you to go pick a fight. I’m telling you to talk to someone who sees through different lenses. Find out why they feel that way and tell them how you feel.
Our need for interaction.
This is another reason I think it’s important to challenge other writers. When we have discussions with people, we’re interacting. Sure, there are those that cannot be reasoned with. Waste no time with them. Seek to find those with whom you can have deep, cordial discussions.
It makes the writer think.
Who in the writing community does not like to have their thoughts provoked? When we challenge another perspective, we are making that person think. The objective is not to change their mind, but to have the reader and the writer both walk away having considered each other's opinions.
Other readers may agree with you.
But you would not know this unless you took the risk to comment and state how you feel. It’s a great feeling to comment on an article, and then see the impact your comment has on the other readers. Oftentimes, your comment will receive claps and trigger other comments. This builds new connections.
Or you may encounter readers that disagree with your comment.
And it forces you to think! To touch on what I said earlier, we writers/readers enjoy having our thoughts provoked. I encourage you to provoke thought in others and allow your own thoughts to be provoked!
Thank you for reading.
