I can recall a time when I encountered a situation where my personal beliefs came into question and I was led into a debate about it. I will not specifically say what the topic was about due to the fact that it is a controversial one, and it is not my intention to express all of my political opinions in an academic forum. Without saying too much, I was at a happy hour at an undisclosed location (a few years back) with a group of friends, and we were having a “political” discussion between the four of us, when all of a sudden someone overheard a specific line in the conversation spoken by me and decided to call me out on it. At first I was kind of taken by the fact that this person had the nerve to enter into a conversation that didn’t concern them, but I quickly got passed that feeling; as the person was making a few valid points that others within the conversation had not previously mentioned. So I engaged in this debate publically, I do after all live and die by what I say, so I’m not one to back down from a conflict to say the least; this is also to say that I can be stubborn at times. So anyway, I listened to what the person had to say for a little bit before I interrupted and gave my point of view. To make a long story short, I kind of won the argument, I say kind of because I don’t feel as if I were truly victorious in conveying my opinion; but more in frustrating my opponent to the point of submission. If I were able to do it all over again, I would have probably paid more attention to what was being said and murdered the person with their own words (I was right after all), instead I didn’t teach my opponent anything new in the process. It can be a productive thing to engage in the exchange of ideas with others; this is shown in interactive sessions known as “Think Tanks”- which are groups of people giving different perspectives on how to come up with solutions to problems. Before one can even get involved in this kind of activity, you must first be able to listen to and evaluate ideas and opinions other than your own; a general respect for others intellect must first be established. I didn’t give that respect in my situation, I was on a destroy mission because I didn’t appreciate the person butting in my conversation, and although I did “win” the debate; I would use more finesse and tones of persuasion to get my point across.
"Any barbarian could swing a cudgel and emerge victorious but to out-smart your opponent grants true victory..." This is no famous quote cliched by society, to prove a point. This is my starategy when I play chess, anyone can whittle down the board until only few pieces remain, but the true strategist can claim victory utilizing their pieces as well as their opponents. I am still working on being able to do this efficiently and effortlessly. It takes a lot of time and effort to be able to master this.
ReplyDeleteAs for your case in that unspecified location, it brought a smile to my face to hear such a tale. But few people can admit what you did. Many people think that by belittling your opponent and making them "realize" how foolish they are, means that they emerge victorious. End of conversation. No. The conversation just started, after these tit for tat sessions if you can not only convince the opposition that yours is the "right" thought or way, but if you can also have them see and truly believe what your opinion is, that is a flawless victory. Being able to convert the opposition into an ally is a far more greater prize than just being able to say, "You just got served..."