Remember Just One Thing in Every Conversation: Respect
People say a huge number of words every day. And yet it's strange. We work for hours to earn money, but we never calculate how much we earn and lose with our mouths.
There's a Korean proverb: one good word can repay a debt of a thousand coins. One kind word wins a heart, and one careless remark loses the person closest to you.
Maybe the mouth is a tool that earns all day long, and at the same time the most dangerous weapon for stabbing people.
Some words light up your heart when you hear them.
"It's okay." "You worked hard." "You did some things right, too."
They cost nothing and win hearts. These are flowers blooming from the mouth.
Other words leave wounds that money can't erase.
"Even plastic surgery couldn't fix you." "You can't even do that?" "You still don't know what you did wrong?"
A knife wound at least heals. A wound from words rarely heals in the other person's memory.
But there are too many rules for conversation
The advice for good conversation never ends.
Listen. Empathize. Be considerate. Acknowledge. Ask questions. Respect feelings. Don't blame. Don't compare. Watch your words. Read facial expressions.
How many people can memorize all of this and still have a conversation?
So I want to make it simpler.
Merge the overlapping ones and they boil down to three:
Respect. Empathy. Restraint.
Listening to the other person, thinking about their position, and not pouring out everything you want to say.
But even that's a lot. The more there is to remember, the more people miss what matters most.
If you keep only one, this is enough.
Before you speak, ask yourself just once:
"Is this something a person who respects them would say?"
If you respect someone, you don't mock them carelessly.
If you respect someone, you don't dig into their weak spots.
If you respect someone, you don't compare them to others.
If you respect someone, you don't ignore their feelings.
If you respect someone, even when you're angry, you know which words must never be said.
A verse said the same thing long ago:
"There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing." (Proverbs 12:18)
Read the original (Korean) →
There's a Korean proverb: one good word can repay a debt of a thousand coins. One kind word wins a heart, and one careless remark loses the person closest to you.
Maybe the mouth is a tool that earns all day long, and at the same time the most dangerous weapon for stabbing people.
The same mouth produces knives and flowers
Some words light up your heart when you hear them.
"It's okay." "You worked hard." "You did some things right, too."
They cost nothing and win hearts. These are flowers blooming from the mouth.
Other words leave wounds that money can't erase.
"Even plastic surgery couldn't fix you." "You can't even do that?" "You still don't know what you did wrong?"
A knife wound at least heals. A wound from words rarely heals in the other person's memory.
But there are too many rules for conversation
The advice for good conversation never ends.
Listen. Empathize. Be considerate. Acknowledge. Ask questions. Respect feelings. Don't blame. Don't compare. Watch your words. Read facial expressions.
How many people can memorize all of this and still have a conversation?
So I want to make it simpler.
Down to three, then to one
Merge the overlapping ones and they boil down to three:
Respect. Empathy. Restraint.
Listening to the other person, thinking about their position, and not pouring out everything you want to say.
But even that's a lot. The more there is to remember, the more people miss what matters most.
If you keep only one, this is enough.
Respect
Before you speak, ask yourself just once:
"Is this something a person who respects them would say?"
If you respect someone, you don't mock them carelessly.
If you respect someone, you don't dig into their weak spots.
If you respect someone, you don't compare them to others.
If you respect someone, you don't ignore their feelings.
If you respect someone, even when you're angry, you know which words must never be said.
A verse said the same thing long ago:
"There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing." (Proverbs 12:18)
