Listen Up!

I’ve been enjoying monthly breakfast with a friend from high school days for a couple years now. I hadn’t seen Kathy for decades when, hurrying into a new grocery store one rainy morning, there she was! Although it’s sometimes hard to find a mutually good time and place, we always carve out some time together. We talk about the usual (and not so usual) happenings of our families and friends as well as what we do at the office and in our free time. On one hand, it’s all pretty casual. On the other, our little Breakfast Club is all about one of the most important pieces of living well—building and maintaining good relationships. 

I’d like to be a better listener and focus less on trying to “fix” things.

The Greek philosopher Epictetus reportedly said: “Nature gave us one tongue and two ears so we could hear twice as much as we speak.”

That’s good advice. Here’s some more:

The less you talk, the more you’re listened to. – Abigail Van Buren

Let others confide in you. It may not help you, but it surely will help them. – Roger G. Imhoff

A good listener is not only popular everywhere, but after a while he knows something. – Wilson Mizner

It is all right to hold a conversation, but you should let go of it now and then. – Richard Armour

So, dear readers, I’d like to let go of this one-sided conversation and listen to you! Post your comments, questions, and ideas about making (and keeping) good friends below.

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March 30, 2009