Choose Your Words Carefully - They Carry More Power Than You Think
“Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me”
Or can they. They sure can. The words we use have so much power behind them, that without realizing the consequences (positive or negative), we may be losing out on the bigger picture. How we word our sentences determines reactions. It also determines how we are perceived as individuals.
Words can be used for good. Or words can be used to hurt others. When we trash talk others, whether it is in front of the person or not, it is still mean and hurtful. But we tend to do it a lot. Especially trash talking others behind their back. And while it can be justified as “venting” about others to feel better, ask yourself whether you would ever say it in front of the person when you can actually see their feelings get hurt. To watch their facial expression transform to sadness. Then would you still say the same things? Likely not.
While we all hope that people don’t trash talk us, why do we ourselves do it so often? We tell ourselves, “he/she will never find out what I’m saying.” Perhaps not, but does that justify our words? Does that make it okay to be mean? Usually when we feel angry and want to vent about others, we trash talk instinctively. What if we were to take a few steps back and wait to calm down. Wouldn’t it be that much easier to bite our tongue then? We can still vent about a situation, but cutting back on cruel words can make all the difference.
When we say mean things about others, we don’t realize how harsh it actually sounds. The trigger for this article that happened for me was when I was listening to strangers say mean things about their “friends”. The words used were just so superficial. Trash talking sessions between friends really aren’t a necessary part of bonding. It actually becomes a bad habit. When the same group of friends come together and a name pops up, there will automatically be a switch to turn on the hate. What’s worse is that if there’s a person who does not know the victim, and one day actually meets him/her, judgment has already been passed. The victim had no chance from the beginning. Ouch.
This also gives us such a limited view on life’s experiences. A person who is hated on constantly will never be given a second chance. It closes off your own heart to any and all of their possibly good intentions. Whether you’re right or wrong about the individual does not matter. Let others have the chance to see for themselves. We can reserve our own comments and learn to be better people by not getting caught up in trash talk. Don’t get absorbed into group-think. Instead, be the person who influences the group to move on with the subject. Say it however you want, but the more you’re able to stop the group, and especially yourself, on ranting mean comments about others, the less likely trash talk will be the subject of conversation.
Words are so powerful. So powerful that we don’t even realize it sometimes. It is literally a constant part of our daily lives. So let’s make a pact to ourselves. Cut down on the trash talk. Make the world a friendlier place. Perhaps the ripple effect of such behavior can go much further than we can even imagine.
