Conflict Remedy Blog by Lorraine Segal
I heard the term divine listening recently and thought it applied really well to managing conflict. Beyond compassionate listening or listening to understand, divine listening incorporates even more. To me it means listening as if you are Divine yourself.
And how does a loving Divine presence listen? With infinite understanding, with unconditional love, with awareness and acceptance of who each of us is and our inevitable human imperfections. It presupposes that each of us is doing the very best we can with the (limited) tools and knowledge we have.
The Divine has more detachment and can lay out any issue or situation from an inclusive perspective. Then, it is easier to accept assumptions, beliefs, and stories different from yours as equally valid.
A longing for Love and Acceptance are universal—but we don’t always get them or hear them. Just about everyone I’ve ever met or worked with wants to be seen, accepted, loved, understood, and appreciated. At work and in life, people want to contribute and be seen as valuable. At the same time, human misunderstandings of ourselves and others can get in the way.
Some common scenarios:
From a divine perspective, all of this can be embraced and understood with empathy and compassion. When you listen from this perspective you don’t have to take on the other person’s attitude or hostility. If you don’t have to react, you can instead respond in the best way possible. It is a simple concept, but not so easy to implement.
How can you begin to practice divine listening? Here are some tips to get started:
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