Talk, Talk, Talk
In Chapter 19 of Dancing with Life, Phillip Moffitt reflects on the Eightfold Path, which “is not a list of what to do if you want to become a good person. Rather, it is a matrix of behavior, understanding, and practice for finding peace of mind and meaning in your life.”
One of these eight “folds” is Right Speech, “which involves saying what is not only true and useful but also timely…”
“This may sound simple to you, but just wait until you actually try practicing right speech!
“You will discover that much of the time you spend talking serves little or no purpose for you or others. It is simply your brain discharging the pressure you feel through casual, fairly random utterances or running commentary on what you are currently experiencing.
“You quickly discover that speech actually drains you of energy and often creates situations that then demand more of your attention.
“Or you many discover that much of your speech is just a space filler to avoid silence or for the purpose of being entraining when it is not really very interesting to you or the other person.”
Uh oh.
(image from: Creative Whack Pack, by Roger von Oech)