Repositioning the preaching

When we're being preachy, there's only on place we can come from. We appear to be stuck in a location that offers no other vantage points. We've somehow become a prisoner of the ideas we're espousing. We've fixated on some doctrine, truth or right answer. Within this place, there's no two ways about it and no flip side to explore.

Anytime an idea has taken us captive, we are surrounded by other places. We can go to those conceptual locations once we see where we're at and where we're coming from as we communicate with others. We can then reposition ourselves amidst many other possibilities. Here's some examples:

When we're coming from a place of "one right answer", we can go to other positions of:

• it ain't necessarily so because the actual right answer depends on other factors
• it's true some of the time but not always
• it's the right answer under a particular set of circumstances

When we're coming from a place of "let me tell you what to think", we can go to other positions of:

• having listened to others concerns, I've been thinking more deeply
• incorporating what others have considered, I've changed my mind
• seeing how it looks to other viewpoints, I now see what's missing in my outlook

When we're coming from a place of "I'm the better expert", we can go to other positions of:

• others know the situation better than I do
• without others' familiarity with using this, my expertise is useless
• others are better experts at how this comes across to varied frames of reference

When we're coming from a place of "my way of seeing rules", we can go to other positions of:

• how you see things will also see my viewpoint differently than I do
• how you look at this incorporates your experiences with it which differ from my own
• how you picture this will also picture me seeing it differently than you do

Repositioning our own preaching in these ways gives others a much better impression. We transition from being preachy to being considerate and self aware. We come across as "one of us" instead of "some hot shot talking to them". We get beyond making our point to making a difference with those we want to serve.