The point

The insights I have made over the years - lots of years - may not be earthshaking to anyone else but me. I like the idea of a blog, though. Could be that what I have learned - and have yet to learn - resonates with someone out there. Someone perhaps in a part of the world I have never seen, someone I have never met. Or could be someone I know, where we have never had the possibility of sharing thoughts like this.

The intention is to record my professional journey, which started in the mid-1980s  - and test its relevance today. As an American, as someone who grew up in the 50s and 60s in a middle-class home as part of a multicultural NYC environment, I have been privileged - Maslow got it right. Survival needs were covered. Assertiveness, interpersonal communication, listening, cross-cultural communication, these were the areas I developed an interest in. Whatever I learned I tried to pass on to others. Just as it was passed on to me. Since I learn through both reading and interaction, I will refer to several key works that paved my way. Now almost 30 years later, I am re-reading some of the material that spoke to me, curious about whether it is still relevant today. The answer is basically yes. “Normal” people are still in need of help when "normal" everyday interactions go awry. I can’t answer the why - explanations point to psychological, social, cultural, gender factors that run deep. The good news, though, is that it is learned behaviour which we can change. “We can learn to stop and remind ourselves that others may not mean what we heard them say.” (Deborah Tannen, That’s not what I meant! p. 14). More on Tannen later. Now for a word or two on assertiveness ...