Silence is golden. I was a dedicated follower of this golden adage to avoid any escalations or cause of hurt. Little did I realise that I was using the ‘Silent Treatment’ to hurt others till the day I got emotionally hurt by Silence. It was worse than physical pain.
Sam’s story resonated in me only after I got hurt. Sam holds a critical academic position in his School. He was finding it difficult to take days off that matched with his kids. He approached his manager for applying leave and was left unacknowledged till the day he was supposed to board his flight. He did not know whether to go ahead or not. He was further pained when he got approval on the day of his flight, which he obviously missed. “I cannot take the risk to go at the expense of my job.”
An important post is in Linkedin on silent treatment. It is emotionally damaging in children when they are subjected to silence or ignoring from parents. When there is so much emotional baggage in adults and kids, how about students in your schools who get silence? Silence from teachers can be in various forms. Approving a sub-standard work, not giving feedback, not responding to requests, not allowing to argue, are few of the forms. …. teachers expect you not to say anything back to them cause like they’re teachers but like it’s not really that fair… (Anna) is an excerpt from a popular study on silence in schools.
How do I handle silence imposed on me. I find it difficult to fight silence. Instead, I experiment ways to communicate on situations where silence was my preference. I listen to understand. I try to articulate my intuition that says no to a request. I express my inability to come to a decision. I am learning better ways to break my silence.
I can learn more from you. Do you choose to be silent or help me learn from your experience. Do comment below.
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