The 7 Components of a Constructive Conversation
Why conversing is an important yet underrated ‘skill’ today
What’s the role of a conversation? Is it:
- Showing off your expertise?
- Making your counterpart agree with you?
- A healthy exchange of ideas?
A constructive conversation transfers ideas from one mind to another and removes all obstacles from the way. Such a conversation feels as relaxing as a Sunday afternoon in your pajamas.
NPR host Celeste Headlee’s equates it to a game of catch where you throw as much as you catch. You observe the throw (its direction, height, and speed) and adjust accordingly. Your counterpart does the same. Such conversations build trust, reduce stalemates, and move things forward.
But in modern times, holding such conversations appears daunting. In the search engine and instant messaging dominated era of immediate answers, we have no time (read patience) to let conversations unfold slowly.
In her remarkable NY Times piece, Sherry Turkle wrote that to get quicker answers, we ask simpler (and dumber) questions, even in important matters.
Texts and emails make us feel in control of our responses and time. But they place roadblocks in the path of…
