The Art of Mindful Communication: Think First, Speak Second

Many experiences over the last two decades of adulthood have taught me the extreme importance of healthy communication. It is truly an art when one can communicate ideas, specifically complex and difficult topics, to others in a way that is easily digestible and not negative response provoking. When I was younger I would often share things without first processing what I was sharing and people would be hurt by my words that were irrational and offensive. It took going through many types of relationships over roughly 20 years to realize the importance of thoughtful consideration of the people I was addressing, as well as processing my ideas thoroughly before verbalizing them.

Healthy communication with those around us is born from developing a deeper sense of awareness of ourselves and others. I believe that this was learned from developing a mindfulness practice at the ripe old age of 13. Back then, I didn’t even know what the word “mindfulness” meant, but regardless, I was learning to observe my mind and body through a yoga video I found online from New Zealand.

It wasn’t a quick or easy process to learn how to communicate in a healthy way to others. For me, it took hurting a lot of people and seeing their pain before connecting the dots and realizing what impact my words had on others. I look back on a lot of things I’ve done and cringe when I realized how careless I was with my communications. Thankfully, I later realized this and apologized to the people I hurt and did my best to not let this happen as much into the future.

I’m now writing this to you in hopes that you will be able to put what I’ve learned, through trial and error, to good use without leaving as much carnage and destruction in your path as I did during my slow learning process.

The summary is to focus your daily efforts on being self-aware through being mindful. Let go of distractions whenever you can, bring your attention to the moment and be thoughtful with your intentions in life. Move slowly, at the speed of a turtle, never rush, consider all sides of the story before speaking, and share from your heart with well-planned thoughts.