I was watching a video the other night, and some people who were on the video were sharing some things from a point of view that I didn’t agree with. I found myself becoming more and more upset as I continued to watch. My saving grace was a loved one who said to me “hey, they’re just sharing their experience.”

Their experience. That statement alone was enough to rein me in and remind me why I love having spaces to engage in dialogue. In this space, one cannot compete with another’s experience. One cannot tell another what they have felt or experienced, but we can listen to that experience, share our own experiences, find commonalities or differences, and possibly come to a greater understanding.

Have you ever been in a conversation with someone about something important to you, and felt as if you weren’t being listened to? Ever felt like your experiences were being invalidated or explained away?

On the other hand, have you ever felt as if another person’s point of view was totally wrong, and it was up to you to “make them understand” the right way? Have you ever found yourself quickly thinking of a rebuttal or counter-example to something they’ve just said, from the moment they were beginning to say it?

If so, you may have been engaging in a debate.

Working to resolve conflicts can be difficult, and when approached from an adversarial perspective, any sort of gain can seem to be impossibly out of reach.

However, conflict does not always have to be a bad thing.

Here is a resource I use in engaging and teaching others the skills to foster another, more collaborative kind of communication: Dialogue.

Debate

Dialogue

Assuming that there is one right answer and that you have it

Assuming that many people have pieces of the answer and that only together can they craft a solution

Combative: participants attempt to prove the other side wrong

Collaborative: participants work together toward common understanding

About winning

About learning

Listening to find flaws and make counterarguments

Listening to understand and find meaning

Defending assumptions as truth

Revealing assumptions for reevaluation

Critiquing the other side’s position

Re-examining all positions

Defending one’s own views against those of others

Admitting that others’ thinking can improve one’s own

Searching for flaws and weaknesses in other positions

Searching for strengths and value in others’ positions

Seeking a conclusion or vote that ratifies your position

Discovering new opinions, not seeking closure

Chart adapted from Daniel Yankelovich, The Magic of Dialogue (1999)

In thinking about the journey to build more equitable and inclusive communities, getting to “that place” can be difficult. It can be hard to talk in-depth about our experiences with issues of race, class, sexual orientation, gender, ability, religion, age, and our experiences with our identifying in other parts of our identities as well, but as I work to engage myself and others in dialogue about these issues, I’ve found it helpful to stay mindful of these differences in communication.

Could you see yourself anywhere in this comparison? How we can move beyond debate in our lives?

Ubuntu,

From Aspiring Humanitarian, Relando Thompkins, MSW

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