Bullying at schools is a big issue in Australia today. My blog is Quotation Celebration, where I discuss the meaning and lessons contained within great quotes. You’re not predicting John’s arrival time. What’s the source of the information? But even in such conversations, our words should help in some way. We don't want to stop people printing. I made it as far as a baseball scholarship to a Division 1 college. While speaking may seem to happen without a lot of thought because it occurs so quickly, psycholinguistics research has actually shown that we do plan our speech in different ways and we do think in advance to various degrees.. As such, we are not doomed to say the first thing that enters our head—we actually do have the ability to control our tongue. How To Not Be Annoying: 5 Highly Effective Tips! I love people. At the risk of generalizing, attorneys and politicians often speak words that are true but not sincere. Does this encourage them in some way? It’s easy to be honest without being sincere. I’m not talking about interpersonal pep talks. It usually happens over time and can have catastrophic consequences for the victim. Most people don't understand the subtle art of keeping quiet and paying attention to what the other person is saying. They’re words that convey respect. K – KIND. In other contexts, such as a job interview, the stakes can be high. It’s more difficult to affirm. When is it harmful? Sometimes we sacrifice a bit of accuracy for the sake of sincerity and kindness. So let’s take a look at the acronym T-H-A-N-K-S, and see how it can help us avoid saying something we will one day rue. Assisting others to make better decisions through offering good advice is also important. Even before you pick a real estate agent, you can do some basic research using sites like Zillow and Realtor.com, which can give you insight into exactly what you can afford and where. Here, you emerge from the bizarrely eroded cliffs onto an extraordinary view: the famous facade of Petra’s Treasury looming before you. There’s nothing to be gained otherwise. On the other hand, thinking before we speak allows us the time to consider the effect of the words we are choosing. Kind words are free to speak. Of course, sometimes our conversation revolves around friendly exchanges that are little more than catching up. Another great tool for helping to train yourself to think before you speak is to use the THINK acronym. If you would like to discover how counselling can benefit you in your everyday life and help you learn to implement strategies and techniques for thinking before you speak, please give us a call at Cooks Hill Counselling. Mentally say ‘pause’ -- imagine you are reaching for a remote control. Why ‘think before you speak’? Not just to you, but to the human race. [CDATA[ Other times, particularly when feeling defensive, we tend to be very reactionary and quick to answer back without proper thought. These are the fundamental social skills required for living successfully. But within a few years, felt called to the ministry, where I spent 32 years as a pastor. Download this graphic and use it instead. It may seem that doing the above requires a lot of time and effort, and if you have trained your mind to always immediately react, it will seem like that at first. think twice To reconsider, be cautious about, or thoroughly contemplate something before committing to it. Is what you’re about to say true? A kind word from a stranger can literally make a person’s day. But we have plenty of control over what we say to them. We simply think that sometimes, Is there some means by which we won’t end up regretting the words we speak? They can be helpful or hurtful, and can have a direct influence on the outcome of a situation,  creating a positive or negative reaction in our world. Be prepared to think before you speak, say what you mean, stand behind your statements and be responsible for them. When you don’t think before you speak, you’re more likely to make badly informed statements and reduce your credibility, let alone hurt someone by ‘putting your foot in your mouth’, even if your intentions were genuinely harmless. Consider how And beyond social media, as adults we also experience the power of words in many other contexts. Is it really necessary to say to someone, “You’re always late”? Kind words are polite words. Email: Useless chatter is annoying, while language that actively hurts others is wholly unnecessary. There are many fine, honest, and sincere attorneys. Are we sure we heard correctly? I love the outdoors. Mutually sharing information that lets people know how we’re doing or what we’re planning. Maybe not in some tangible, physical way. We all want to feel affirmed. We begin with the word true. Change the colour of the text to a green of your choice and save the signature. © Copyright A Conscious Rethink. Instead, listen to your thoughts and observe them as they come and go. Lyrics to 'Think Before You Do' by Funkshy Feat. But how do we go about this in a practical way? (hint: a bit of critical thinking helps in these instances). If it’s necessary, go ahead and say it. And to do it with gentleness and care. Such words may not be appreciated, but they are no less necessary. Once they are said, they can only be forgiven, never forgotten. You may feel there is an obligation to say something all the time but there really is not! Sometimes our words of encouragement are not 100% factual yet they are 100% sincere. We tell someone that everything will be okay, when deep down we know it won’t be. If it’s not, keep it to yourself where it belongs. All Rights Reserved | Contact Us | Privacy Policy, 10 Tips To Help Couples Communicate More Effectively In Their Relationship, How To Sound Smart And Speak More Eloquently, 13 Reasons Why People Don’t Listen To You, How To Calm Down When You’re Really Really Angry (+ 7 Things NOT To Do), How To Speak More Clearly, Stop Mumbling, And Be Heard Every Time, something critical, harsh, mean, or cruel, Speak to them like you care about them as a person. And it starts with really listening and comprehending during an interaction, before opening your mouth. You may also like (article continues below): This is probably the most difficult one of the 6 to navigate. Whoever you happen to be speaking to will want to be affirmed just like you will. Kind words build up rather than tear down. If someone is preparing to drive home when they’ve had too much to drink, you will want to speak directly to them and tell them that it’s not safe or wise to drive home in their condition. Cyberbullying (whether by texting, emailing or on social media) can damage friendships, cause trust issues, spread rumours and exacerbate mental health problems in young people. “John told me he will be in late tomorrow.”. It takes just a little bit of effort to say something kind rather than something critical, harsh, mean, or cruel. More than half of all pages printed are never used. When it comes to perpetuating life-altering changes, Coronavirus has really taken the cake. I love to learn. You’re simply reporting that John said he will be in late tomorrow. And when continually reinforced and turned into habitually negative thought patterns, they have the power to create a bad habit of dwelling on the negatives in life. We also want to speak what is helpful. Politicians too. Is this merely our opinion we’re passing off as true? And I leave you with a sober reminder of the responsibility we have when it comes to our words: Be careful with your words. Have you ever said something you later regretted saying? You speak to them like they matter. Fortunately, our speech can improve significantly by following one simple rule: think before you speak. If you are using a Mac you may need to download and install the Webdings font. But it’s usually more complicated than this. It’s up to us to control our own tongue and take responsibility for what emerges from our mouths. You aren’t saying that John will be late or not. I try to take a long walk every day year-round. Some way we can improve what we say? The voice in your head may be saying one thing, but your ‘pause’ button will help you decide if it is something that should be said out loud. Not likely. Don’t be a purveyor of untruth. Be the one who changes the world of one person through your kind words. I'm going to sue them for everything they're worth—maybe then they'll think twice about trying to steal my ideas! many times an almost completely blank "page 2 of 2" comes out of your Lies and misinformation hurt others and reflect the liar as someone untrustworthy. Speaking what is true is not enough. This page contains affiliate links. It isn’t just one or two countries. It’s so easy to criticize. We estimate that over 50% of pages printed are never looked at. At least not in the way they think it will be. What we say can heal or harm. Option 3.) often needlessly printed we might start a small movement of change. Do you want to learn how to think before you speak? We want to speak words that help rather than hinder. Please consider the environment before printing. N – NECESSARY. There is so much hostility in modern society that it’s shocking to see people in the public square speaking kindly to others. //]]> We hope that by putting our gentle reminders on the documents that are so There are innumerable ways we can speak words that are helpful. It’s much better to simply remind them that it’s important to be on time when they can actually do something about it. It’s where I do some of my best thinking. Even just a few extra seconds of thinking time can make a huge difference, so simply ‘pressing pause’ allows you to make a better choice as to how to proceed. If you aren’t sure, double check. The problem is, once words exit our mouth, no amount of apologies will make them magically go back in: blurting something out and then trying to retract it is like shutting the gate after the horse has bolted. We're not against printing. When we make a statement claiming to know something is true, we should be sure that it is. Have you ever had words spoken to you that you wished had not been said? Are your words helpful? People are greatly inspired by words which have the influence to prompt others to do amazing things. Then deem it not an idle thing, //