Listening, or just waiting your turn?

Tonight, I sat down to write my daily Tiny Experiments post and found I had nothing to say.

[Long pause]

After work today, I was at an in-person meet-up.

I felt a quiet irritation rise.

I noticed how little listening there was in the room.

People jumped in as soon as there was a pause.

What I noticed was how easy it is to confuse waiting for your turn to speak with listening.

One is about holding your point.

The other is about letting yourself be open.

To a new connection.

To having your mind changed (which can feel like an incredible thing).

To making a new discovery.

📍Pins to ponder

• What else becomes possible within the individual act of listening?

• What conditions need to be in place for listening to be possible in shared spaces?

• Can these conditions be designed, or are they intrinsic to the listener?

Thinking Out Loud is where I share short pieces of reflection from the middle of the work: ideas, questions, and lived experiences, offered while they’re still forming. (Tiny Experiments Pact: Day 15/100).