Listening is a magnetic and strange thing, a creative force. The friends who listen to us are the ones we move toward. When we are listened to, it creates us, makes us unfold and expand.

~ Karl Menninger

So much of our lives are spent in communication with others. Conversations can be a great opportunity to practise being mindful. Our lives run at such a speed, with competing forces pulling our attention in all directions, that bringing full attention to someone is a truly rare and precious gift. By being mindful in our conversations, we open ourselves up to greater empathy and insight into the unique perspectives of other people in our lives. It’s a challenging practice, but one that can deepen and enrich both our personal and professional relationships.

Today you’ll hear from a truly inspiring teacher who shares perspectives on how to bring mindfulness into our relationships and communication. We all have different natural ways of being in communication and it’s worth taking some time this week to become aware of your own patterns. Are you someone that tends to talk more or listen more?

On a ten day insight dialogue retreat with Gregory, I had some big insights into my own style of communicating and discovered that for me, generosity looked like offering people I was in conversation with more space to talk. For others who were more introverted, they discovered that in fact sharing their perspectives and talking was the generous act that countered their natural tendency to stay quiet.

As you move through your week, bring more mindfulness (present moment awareness) to your own urges and habits in conversation, and experiment with trying new ways of interacting. If you tend to be a talker make more space. If you tend to be more of a listener recognise that sharing your perspectives is actually an act of generosity.

Use the Facebook group to share what you notice in this experiment in mindful communication and of course let us know how your meditation practice is going. You can also share mindful moments from your daily life to anchor you to more presence and gratitude.