Things We Think, But Never Say
Have you ever noticed that there are things you think ALL THE TIME, but you NEVER say them out loud?
I do that quite a bit.
And sometimes I wonder why not?
There are plenty of things I think in my head and never verbalize, but maybe I should. On the other hand, there are quite a few things I say in my head that I don’t say out loud, and it should most likely stay that way. I’m sure (I HOPE) you can relate. I just find it rather amusing…
So, here are a few things people THINK, but never SAY:
“Wow what a pretty/cool (insert clothing item or accessory)!”
How many times have you seen someone wearing a neat blouse or a pretty dress and never told them so? How many times have you noticed someone with a cool watch or hat and never mentioned it to them?
A compliment is worth its weight in GOLD. The person you compliment will remember it every time they wear that clothing item or accessory.
Why don’t I do this more often? Honestly, I don’t know.
Okay, I’m not saying to randomly go up to perfect strangers in Minneapolis just to compliment their shirt.
Creepy much? Uh, yeah. Please exercise caution. There is a time to be nice, and a time to be “not creepy.” Just to warn you, people don’t take kindly to creepy people. You don’t want people to go home and be like, “I was just walking along, and this random stranger crosses the street, looks me in the eye, tells me my watch is extremely incredible, and walks back!” DON’T BE THAT PERSON!
But what about the checkout lady, your waiter, the people you’ve been stuck with in the elevator for 30 seconds, or YOUR FRIENDS and FAMILY?
What I’m saying is, establish a little bit of a relationship before complimenting someone. Try to AVOID coming across as creepy, weird, or suspicious-looking.
“I really wish you would stop talking so I can leave.”
Ouch.
I’ve thought this on way more than one occasion, and then I realize people I know probably think the same thing about me sometimes.
But you know the scenarios I’m talking about:
You’ve been standing there for at LEAST thirty minutes, haven’t said a word, your feet are aching, you’re barely even listening anymore, and all you can think is, “Why oh WHY did I EVER start talking to this person?!”
I need to start saying less when I talk to people. We need to remember that people don’t always want to listen to us talk. Surprisingly, they are much more interested in telling US about THEM. So much for the thought that you’re the only person in the world who likes to talk. Ha. Nope! Sometimes (actually, A LOT of the time), you just gotta shut up and listen.
Again, DON’T BE THAT PERSON!
“I can’t believe you’re treating me this way after all I’ve been through this week/today!”
Normally this statement rolls through your head after someone makes (what seems to them) a harmless comment, unaware of everything you’ve had to endure in life over the past week or day.
Isn’t funny how your mind instantly makes them the villain because they are asking you to do something simple? You know…
You’ve had a long day. You’ve been working hard at school or work, but you’re still behind. And then, out of the blue, someone in your family or circle of friends says, “Hey! Could you drop me off at the airport and feed my cats while I’m gone?”
Harmless comment, right? Except not. Because you roll your eyes inside and get very much annoyed because those actions they are asking you to do will add EVEN MORE stress onto your already full week of work.
Here’s the problem:
They aren’t doing this to you to make you miserable (most likely). It’s not like you’ve TOLD them you’re stressed beyond belief and that this day has been rather hard on you. They make these “harmless” comments in complete ignorance, but for some reason we expect people to just be able to “sense” when we’re stressed, frustrated, or annoyed. Unless they know you SUPER WELL (and sometimes not even then), they will not know anything’s wrong. I know, shocker.
Nevertheless, we still think those thoughts. I pray that I can develop better patience and a willingness to share my problems with close friends so I don’t end up shooting arrows at people because they “savagely” neglected to magically obtain the power of reading my mind.
“What are you THINKING/DOING?!”
This one applies to the following scenarios:
- Driving on pretty much any road
- School/work environments
- When doing crazy things yourself
- Working with people in general
Don’t you wish you could read people’s minds sometimes? This happens a lot when working with people because people all think differently. For some reason, we seem to have this tendency to think that our thought process is MUCH more logical than everybody else’s. Why? I’m game to assume it has something to do with pride…
Oops.
On the other hand, there’s a lot of things that you do YOURSELF that cause you to think these thoughts! Like, trying new things, working out, starting a business, babysitting four children at a time, following a random car hoping that you will magically end up where you want to go (yes, I’ve done that!), or playing a new sport. But I’m inclined to think that (as long as these new things aren’t illegal) it’s okay to say this to yourself. AS LONG AS YOU DON’T QUIT just because doing new things is HARD. Seriously. Don’t quit when the going gets tough! Work through it because it’s worth it!
I didn’t expect to learn this much by examining these things…wow!
Can you think of more things people think but never say? These are probably only a few examples, but they were the ones I thought of for now 🙂
Until next time,
Hope Frances
A Cause Worth Fighting For
