Recently I was chatting to a stranger who had, in my opinion, a very dated and passionate view on military conscription.
Now like you, I am very opinionated.
This means we encounter people with very different views to us. And, if we aren’t careful this can lead us to bombard them with our opinion, to persuade them, and show them where they are wrong. We want to prove our point. And in some ways be victorious in this small battle.
And in doing so…
We.
Lose.
The.
Person!
As I talked to the passionate opinionated stranger my desire was for just one thing.
To win the person, not win the battle.
So, I listened.
Asked questions.
Tried to understand their view.
And, not surprisingly, learnt something.
∴
There are plenty of places for disagreement and this September we have some pretty big issues to vote on in the referendums.
Already the opinions are strong, and they will escalate to conversations and social media rants.
And when these opinions conflict with yours remember its more important to Win the person, not the battle.