"We have a choice. We have two options as human beings. We have a choice between conversation and war. That's it. Conversation and violence." ~ Sam Harris
This quote by Sam Harris doesn't strike me as hyperbole.
Our ability to have a conversation is the only thing that stands in the way of violence.
When two parties engage in a battle, physical or otherwise, there is a difference in view (which is considered irreconcilable).
To have a conversation is the antithesis of it, it is to believe that through exchanging words we indeed can come to an understanding. This sentiment is what this group is all about.
Obviously conversation is important, otherwise we wouldn't be having these discussion. The next question is; why does it go wrong all too often?
Think about the conversations about religion, politics, philosophy that you've had with your family, colleagues and friends that have gone sour, or come to a stand still. What happened? Why did they go wrong? What can we do to fix them?
Are you friends with anyone with radically different views to you? Is the quality of the relationship dependent on simply never bringing those topics up?
Have you reliable ways to bring up difficult or sensitive topics in a way that is productive?
What have been some of the best conversations you've had? What do you think made them go so well?
When have you successfully changed the other person's mind? When have you been open enough that your mind was changed in a conversation? Please, tell us all about it, so we can all learn from your experiences.
This conversation will be the first of a series on how to have better conversations. I don't have the answer to this question, and it is likely none of us will. But perhaps through discussing it we can all come closer to the answer.
I won't leave any recommended reading for this one, but please give a think about all of these questions. If there are any stories from your life where conversations have gone either very poorly or very well, bring them along and we can use them to figure out the secret sauce to having fun and productive conversations.
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The link to access this event is: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89749679369?pwd=MnhvYlZ0ay9RNk92LzV1cTRSdHpOZz09
This should suffice, but in case it doesn't:
Meeting-ID:[masked]
Passcode:[masked]
Looking forward to seeing you all there!
