It might be very difficult to hear your inner voice, yet it can lead to a world of opportunities for development and transformation. In this post, we examine the art of true listening.
I can’t help but think of the well-known query that concludes Mary Oliver’s poem The Summer Day:
What are your plans for your one wild and valuable life, please?
Late capitalism has a way of evaporating beauty through the printing of images on mugs, pencil cases, and, come to think of it, toilet paper.
I’m making an effort not to let that sentence ruin my enjoyment of Esterification, though. Asking yourself this sincere question—”What can I do with this precious life?”—can be helpful.
What? Rather than being a lifeless, wavy quote, the statement becomes a challenge, maybe the most significant one you might ask yourself, the catalyst for beginning to consider how to create a better existence.
When I was asked to conduct an interview about the differences between dating in France and England with Fred Sirieix, the charming Frenchman who hosts Channel 4’s First Dates, more than ten years ago, after quitting my journalism job, I can still clearly recall asking myself a similar question.
I came to the excruciatingly difficult and brief conclusion that I needed to choose a new route for my journalism after learning that there aren’t actually that many distinctions.
After starting my studies in mental health, I went on to become a psychodynamic psychotherapist for the NHS, a patient undergoing psychoanalysis, and now your new columnist.
My perspective on what it means to live a better life has unavoidably been impacted by my experiences as a patient and a psychotherapist, and I’m excited to investigate some of the options.
If I were to choose only one, I believe it would be to develop listening skills. It requires work; even after years of training and experience, I’m still a novice. However, I’m not referring to formal education here.
Why not make an effort to listen and open your mind to the people in your immediate environment, those on the radio, and those in books?
Take in the stunning and heartbreaking humanity that exists all around us and make an effort to comprehend. When you catch yourself making an assessment, passing judgment, or choosing a side, stop and consider why. Attempt to listen instead.
