The need to be right can arise from a fear of being disrespected. Or it may come out of the fear of being seen as we really are: as flawed human beings who are perfectly imperfect and full of contradictions and confusions.
Julian TreasureRead
The human voice: It's the instrument we all play. It's the most powerful sound in the world, probably. It's the only one that can start a war or say 'I love you.' And yet many people have the experience that when they speak, people don't listen to them.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The human voice holds great power, able to influence emotions and actions profoundly, yet many feel unheard when they speak.
Julian Treasure emphasizes the unique power of the human voice in shaping experiences and relationships. It is an instrument capable of instigating significant social changes or expressing deep-seated emotions, like love. However, the frustrating reality is that despite its potential, many individuals feel that their voices go unheard or unacknowledged in conversations, pointing to a disconnect in interpersonal communication.
Themes
VoiceCommunicationListeningPowerExpression
In practice
Example use cases
In a motivational speech about the importance of communication skills.
More from Julian Treasure
All quotes →You can't truly listen to someone and do anything else at the same time.
Julian TreasureRead
Intention is very important in sound, in listening. When I married my wife, I promised her I would listen to her every day as if for the first time. Now that's something I fall short of on a daily basis.
Julian TreasureRead
Just three minutes a day of silence is a wonderful exercise to reset your ears and to recalibrate so that you can hear the quiet again. If you can't get absolute silence, go for quiet; that's absolutely fine.
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People find birdsong relaxing and reassuring because over thousands of years, they have learnt when the birds sing, they are safe; it's when birds stop singing that people need to worry.
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This devaluing of listening is handed down from generation to generation. There are many children who don't have the experience of being listened to by their parents.
Julian TreasureRead
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It is not so much the content of what one says as the way in which one says it. However important the thing you say, what's the good of it if not heard or, being heard, not felt?
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There is a difference between listening and waiting for your turn to speak.
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All communication involves faith; indeed, some linguisticians hold that the potential obstacles to acts of verbal understanding are so many and diverse that it is a minor miracle that they take place at all.
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