It seems like most everyone likes to do most of the talking and not so much of the listening. This means that far too often when we are having what we believe to be a “conversation,” it really isn’t a conversation at all, but rather, more typically, represents each person talking pass the other person. The reason why so many of us like to talk, and not so much to listen, has an awful lot to do with our belief that what we have to say, is obviously of much more importance than what the other person might have to say. In some cases, this is going to be true, but it certainly isn’t true all of the time, and further to the point, it represents the talker as taking upon their self, the essential belief that they are superior and hence of more value than the other.
For all those that know everything, and therefore couldn’t possibly learn anything else, then it certainly makes sense for those people to do most of the talking – but, the reality of the situation is that we don’t know it all, even when we think that we do. So too, when we reflect upon who we really are, we have got to recognize that whatever got us to the point where we got to be so wise and smart, has fundamentally been because we listened to others that were wise and smart, and therefore learned from them. In fact, wisdom comes in many guises, for there are plenty of people that aren’t all that book-smart, but are, in their own way, quite incisive about certain matters that should concern us. That is to say, wisdom and good advice can indeed come from unexpected sources.
Also, it has to be acknowledged that common courtesy would necessitate that a civil society, needs to provide to each person, some semblance of having a voice that matters; because when those that have no voice and are never listened to, because their voice is considered to be of little merit or relevancy -- what then inevitably happens is that those that perceive that they are not being heard, will find a way, to make themselves heard, by instigating, for example, uncivil actions as a way of asserting their voice.
A good conversation, necessitates both parties having a fair opportunity to have their say, and for each of those parties to actually listen to that say, by demonstrating in their response, that they have heard the other. This does not mean that we have to agree with one another, but rather that we have an obligation to hear the other person out, especially when what they are conveying seems to be of importance to them.
Finally, when it comes to our own lives and the goals that we so have, it is important that we take the time to actually be still and to listen to our own inner voice, for in all the cacophony of modern day life, we may well fail to comprehend that by listening to that small still voice, as well as by listening to esteemed wise people with a certain depth of experience, that we are provided with the good opportunity then to grow and to mature into successfully expanding our mind, as compared to the closing or contracting of such.