Quote of the Day -- Stephen Covey

Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply. 

-- Stephen Covey

Quote of the Day -- Jean de la Bruyère

The true spirit of conversation consists more in bringing out the cleverness of others than in showing a great deal of it yourself; he who goes away pleased with himself and his own wit is also greatly pleased with you. 

--  Jean de la Bruyère

Quote of the Day -- Simon Sinek

There is a difference between listening and waiting for your turn to speak.

-- Simon Sinek

Quote of the Day -- Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Good communication is just as stimulating as black coffee, and just as hard to sleep after.

-- Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Quote of the Day -- Marshall McLuhan

A point of view can be a dangerous luxury when substituted for insight and understanding.

-- Marshall McLuhan

Some People's Lives Just Seem More Interesting

Some people's lives just seem more interesting... I don't mean famous people or people who have amazing jobs that we all envy. I mean everyday people who just seem to have interesting and humorous encounters, fascinating ideas, quirky relatives, etc.

My mom used to tell the story of a woman who said to her, "Your kids are so amazing. They seem to say such funny things all the time." And my mom replied, "Most kids say funny things. You just have to listen." And she was good at that. Listening for the nuggets, remembering them, and retelling them. Probably we would all have more interesting stories to tell if we just listened and observed more closely. And remembered. On the other hand...

I have a friend in London named Gabriela. I live in Minnesota. We've only met in person a few times, back in the days before I retired when we attended the same conferences. But we've become mutual "followers" on Facebook and our friendship has blossomed. One of the delights of checking Facebook in the morning is to see what interesting things Gabriela has been up to on the other side of the world.  Her latest saga features the adorable neighborhood kittens who insist on using her garden as a litter box. She's tried several deterrents and recently posted an advert for a product she's considering. Mundane, but so funny and quirky. I just thoroughly enjoy the world of Gabby, from the perils of remodeling to the latest tech product experiment to self-improvement initiatives. We might all have lots of interesting nuggets in our lives, but Gabriela has the gift of embracing them with gusto.

On my walks, I've mostly switched my listening from music to podcasts. I listen to Gretchen Rubin quite a bit. Her exploration of human nature and happiness make me think about small changes I might make in my own life to make it a little better. Recently, Gretchen launched a second "quickie" podcast called A Little Happier. It's a very brief, once weekly nugget of wisdom drawn from something she's read, a chance encounter, a past experience. Often after listening I think "I could do that. I could find moments in my life or things I've read that would be worth sharing every week." It's not rocket science, but it is a gift to be observant and to find meaning, relevance, or humor in the things we encounter every day.

A worthy goal -- to try to be a little more interesting by being a little more observant.