As I listen to the news…Oh, you’re saying I shouldn’t do that? You might have a point. But I am interested in the dynamics playing out and the rhetoric, because I believe that the macro reflects the micro and vice versa, and that there is always something to learn from even distant relations that seem so separated from our point of view, and there is potential to refine our way of being through all situations. As my teachers used to say, “The way we deal with the issue IS the issue.” And what I’m hearing in the media and at the highest levels of the political arena is quite a bit of unproductive shaming rhetoric. Unproductive because rather than specifically addressing the issues that aren’t working, why they aren’t working, and recommending solutions, much of the time is being spent on blaming and shaming the behavior of individuals, organizations, and groups. It incites more anger and frustration, but doesn’t do anything to unite people in a common goal. Ultimately it leaves many citizens spinning around in anguished mental circles as they listen to a system breaking down, divisive or hate rhetoric, and no specific facts or solutions that we can all get behind. It’s absolute madness. And the most insidious part is that the only thing many ultimately learn are the tactics of blaming and shaming, completely unproductive.
And I’m thinking, how often do we do this in our own lives? How often do we spend our life force, our daily energy, blaming others and circumstances for what we don’t like, talking about behavior that doesn’t serve a common goal, while not being specific with facts and analysis about what isn’t working and why, and what solutions we believe would make a change for the better?
I’m proposing a more direct, concise, clear path to solution-oriented thinking, and taking responsibility for that kind of communication in our personal lives and in our business lives. Politics is a reflection of society, and while it may seem to be opposed to our values on one level, I see it currently as a teaching tool for us in how much time we waste in blaming and shaming each other rather than actually getting things done. We can look at our own lives and practice a kind of communication with one another that addresses the heart of what we are really wanting to bring about and how that change can happen. We can back that up with facts and experience about what we see isn’t aligned with that change we want to see, and propose a solid solution for forward movement. It’s efficient, its effective, and it utilizes the best parts of us as we bring about the change we want to see in our own lives and in the world.
Yes, Washington can seem like another reality to us, and the people involved can seem to be living by very different standards or values than we want to live by. One positive step we can take is to refine our own communication to being proactive initiators of solution-based thinking and dialogue with others. Seeking collaboration rather than commiseration.
Think about how this might work for you in your own life. Come up with a system that you can use to keep solution-based communication strong and feel free to comment below on your ideas and suggestions. We can all benefit from each other’s wisdom here.
If you want to explore this subject more specifically in your own life, you can Contact me for a private session.
Take good care, Melanie
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