determine how we listen – and how we
listen determines how we interpret and
make sense of our world.
CREATING CONVERSATIONAL
MINDFULNESS
As you learn how to navigate the three
levels of conversations – Transactional
(how to exchange data and information);
Positional (how to work with power and
influence); and Transformational (how to
co-create the future for mutual success) –
your conversations become healthier and
lead to trust and transformational results.
Healthy conversations are built on high
trust. Trust is centered in the prefrontal
cortex and distrust in the amygdala and
limbic areas of the brain. We know this
because these areas light up when a per-son
is asked to respond to questions or to
perform activities that stimulate “trust” or
“distrust.”
Fear and distrust close down our brains.
You can create the conversational space
that creates deeper understanding and
feature
AS WE COME TO
UNDERSTAND THE
POWER OF LANGUAGE IN
REGULATING HOW PEOPLE
FEEL EVERY DAY, AND THE
ROLE LANGUAGE PLAYS
IN THE BRAIN’S CAPACITY
TO EXPAND PERSPECTIVES
AND CREATE A FEEL-GOOD
EXPERIENCE, WE CAN LEARN
TO SHAPE OUR WORKPLACE
IN PROFOUND WAYS.
engagement rather than fear and avoid-ance
by doing three things:
1. Be mindful of your conversations and
the emotional content you bring –
either pain or pleasure. Are you send-ing
friend or foe messages? Are you
sending the message, “You can trust me
to have your best interest at heart” or
“I want to persuade you to think about
things my way”? When you’re aware of
these meta- messages, you can cre-ate
a safe cul-ture
that allows
all parties to interact at
the highest level, sharing per-spectives,
feelings and aspirations and
elevating insights and wisdom.
2. Know that conversations trigger emo-tional
reactions. Conversations carry
meaning – and meaning is embedded
in the listener even more than in the
speaker. Words either cause us to bond
and trust more fully, thinking of others
as friends and colleagues, or they cause
us to break rapport and think of others
as enemies. Your mind will open as you
see the connection between language
and health, and you’ll learn how to cre-ate
healthy organizations through your
conversational rituals.
3. Remember, the words we use in our
conversations are rarely neutral.
Words have histories informed by years
of use. Each time a new experience over-lays
another meaning on a word, the
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HRPATODAY.CA ❚ JULY/AUGUST 2014 ❚ 27