When Both People Are Conscious

Yesterday, my son David was talking about something very important to the two of us.  I was listening, feeding back what I thought he was trying to tell me.  Understanding what I was doing, he stopped speaking and suggested, I know you are listening to me, and then when I am done you will probably just do what you want to do anyway.

That gave me pause.  He was right.  So should I have listened?  Or would it have  been better to say, David, I don’t think I’m open to what you are saying”

The LISTENING turn can get very manipulative and controlling.  The better we are at listening, the more we need to be honest with the speaker.  This all has to do with the primary question: Whose turn it is to speak or to listen? I am saying here that maybe that fundamental question is not enough.  http://lisbepartners.com/content/view/whose-turn-is-it.html

Ed