Do you ever find yourself in a conversation you know you shouldn’t have started? It’s good to talk to people. We are social creatures. Sometimes, though, it’s better to stay quiet.
For me, I only realize that I shouldn’t have said something at the end of a conversation, when it concludes exactly as I thought it would. I then make a mental note to not try to keep conversation with that person in the future. Inevitably, I’ll slip up and ask more follow-up questions or share some anecdote in hopes of maintaining the conversation.
I must be a hopeful person, a person who believes that better is to be had from people, including myself. Good conversations leaving you feeling like you’ve grown in some way. Asking follow-up questions is probably my way of trying to glean something from the conversation. I must think there is more to be gained.
Oftentimes, I find that people simply want to speak, more than they want to be heard. The intention of so much of what we say is to project knowledge outward, instead of casting a net to bring knowledge back in. We want to be sure that what we have to say is spoken. Thinking back on so many things I say throughout the day, it’s not hard to find instances of me simply talking to take up space.
I’m probably trying to say something by continuing the conversation, making a point I must be trying to prove. There are times when I talk too much.
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