Blind Spot: What You Teach
- Jerry Clark
- 11 minutes ago
- 1 min read
It is customary for us to rarely stop telling the truth all at once. Too often, we slowly stop telling the whole truth because experience has taught us it is not emotionally safe. We have learned that honesty is met with anger, criticism, defensiveness, ridicule, or rejection.
After enough painful experiences, silence begins to feel safer than openness.
I have seen this happen in marriages, families, friendships, and leadership teams. Someone asks for honesty, but when the honest answer comes, they punish the person who gave it. The message becomes clear.
Tell me what I want to hear, not what I need to hear.
The tragedy is that once truth leaves a relationship, trust quietly follows. People begin editing their thoughts, hiding their concerns, and protecting themselves instead of protecting the relationship. Conversations become polite but shallow. Problems remain hidden until they become crises.
Emotionally mature people understand that hearing the truth is often uncomfortable, but discomfort is the price of growth. They respond with curiosity instead of defensiveness. They ask gently curious questions. They seek to understand before they seek to explain.
That creates emotional safety, and emotional safety invites honesty.
One of the healthiest questions we can ask the people we love or lead is, "Is there something you have been afraid to tell me?" Then we must listen in a way that makes honesty worth repeating.
Watch for the blind spots.
💭 The biggest breakthrough in your relationships may begin with one simple question: What am I missing? Find the answers in Blind Spots in Relationships. Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Books-A-Million.
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