The power of conversation
A few years ago, the academic calendar was released at the University where I worked. Working with the various individuals and leadership groups to finalize the calendar was in my job description. Every few years, simply because of the day of the week on which January 1 fell, we had a less desirable calendar, and one of the more annoying outcomes was a later graduation date in May. We also had a winter intercession (in January) added to the mix, so we finished our spring semester later than most colleges.
That year, students saw the calendar and complained to their student leadership. The student leadership started a petition, demanding the administration move up the spring schedule to allow students to get out earlier and compete for those summer jobs. I heard about the petition and contacted the student body president. We met in the coffee shop for a chat, and I brought a printed version of the spring calendar (January through May) for that year. I showed him how the variation of January 1 being on a Friday versus a Tuesday causes significant variation in how the spring calendar works.
After discussing the issues and nuances of creating an academic calendar, the student realized there were no good ways to address the original concern, as the calendar itself and the length of a semester dictated the outcome. I asked him about the petition, and he said he would talk to the students and stop it from spreading, which is exactly what he did. I told him it was not my goal to keep the students from expressing concerns or creating a petition; however, it was my goal for him to see that there is often more information than people realize. In the future, I asked him to contact me when there were concerns. We could talk about it and try to come to a solution without petitions (and the feelings of discontent and unrest that often accompany them). And if a petition resulted, at least it would be launched having considered the broader picture.
Honestly, I’m so glad that happened. What a great lesson.
Although I certainly think there is a leadership lesson here, there is also a lesson for everyone: let’s research, ask questions, and have true dialogue before raising our own blood pressure (and the pulse of those around us) with assumptions, rumors, and unwarranted conclusions.
In Why We Shouldn’t Undermine the Power of Conversations, Shakti Saran, observes:
“More often than not it is a conversation (a lack of it or of a particular quality) that is the root of all strife. When you witness a conflict between civilisations, a battle at your workplace, or an argument between husband and wife, it is often the lack of an appropriate dialogue between individuals or departments or communities or nationalities that gets revealed.”
Sometimes we have feelings of strife with people with whom we have no relationship, and we have no real way of establishing that dialogue (a world leader, for example). However, if we really take the time to observe our own lives, I think we will find that we draw conclusions based on incomplete (or ultimately false) information within our own spheres, when we could have initiated dialogue with someone else to better understand the whole.
Rather than immediately responding with an action (such as drawing a conclusion, creating a petition, or planning a protest), respond with a question, a willingness to listen, and a heart to consider the perspective of others. We will become wiser, and the people and organizations of which we are a part will be better for it.
Source: https://thriveglobal.in/stories/why-we-shouldnt-undermine-the-power-of-conversations/
