Brian Kelly
Dr. Ellis
EN 110
14th March 2013
iExamen
2
Before
beginning iExamen 2 I was under the false assumption that I naturally spoke
very truthfully and kindly to everyone I encountered. Unfortunately, however, I
quickly found this to be a false assumption. By no means am I an awful, mean,
lying person but I am also nowhere near a perfect kind, truthful angel either.
This iExamen shed some light on my daily speech habits and allowed me to realized
how powerful words truly can be.
For
the entire day I focused on speaking words that were kind, truthful, and useful
to anyone who I spoke to. In many instances, I found it difficult to be
truthful with everyone because naturally it tends to be easier to just lie to
make for easier conversation or to avoid confrontations. In regards to speaking
usefully, I found myself having to choose my words much more carefully to make
sure everything I was saying was with the purpose of being helpful and useful,
of course, to the person I was speaking to. I noticed I had to think more
before I spoke to make sure I was indeed speaking usefully rather than simply
responding mindlessly. During the course
of the day, a few of my roommates (5 in total) noticed I was acting
particularly “nicer” than usual. Not to say I’m a mean person naturally, but
they did noticed that I was much more enjoyable to be around during my
participation in this iExamen. When speaking to adults, both professors and
service workers, I noticed that my style of speech and use of words did not
change whatsoever which was pleasant to find out.
After
completing one entire day of speaking nothing but useful, nice, and kind words,
I have come to the conclusion that I tend to speak before fully thinking of
what I wish to say. By doing so, my responses tend to be much less nice,
useful, and kind, and more straightforward, “auto-pilot” responses. The ability
to slow down time and take in all of my surroundings before acting both
physically and verbally has enlightened me to continue living this way.
Following in the
Jesuit footsteps, it is comforting to better understand the concept of living
our lives with “critical thinking and effective communication” and living our
lives to better those lives around us. By communicating more effectively, it is
clear that we are able to change our surroundings by first changing ourselves
for the better. When conversing with others in a purely positive, useful, kind,
and nice way, we can begin to change the way those around us communicate as
well.
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