NONVIOLENT COMMUNICATION
Language Of The Heart

by Dr. Lawrence Wilson

© March 2017, L.D. Wilson Consultants, Inc.

 

All information in this article is for educational purposes only.  It is not for the diagnosis, treatment, prescription or cure of any disease or health condition.

 

Contents

 

I. INTRODUCTION

 

II. PRINCIPLES

 

III. THE FOUR STEPS

 

V. OTHER TOPICS

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I. INTRODUCTION

 

Communication is a basic human activity.  It involves touching a deep place within that we share.  It is a process of coming into perfect communion with another, or with a group of others.  It is indeed a valuable skill that must be learned, in most cases. 

Difficulty communicating causes frustration, fear, relationship problems, childhood difficulties, violence and war, in most cases.

Dr. Marshall Rosenberg, a psychologist, has developed a simple, yet powerful method to help this problem.  He calls it Nonviolent Communication or NVC.
            NVC can save marriages, help parents raise their children, and help schools and all other institutions function better.  It can even stop rapes and murders by shifting the attackerÕs focus away from anger.  NVC practice groups now exist in some American cities and around the world.

This article explores Dr. RosenbergÕs method.  It is certainly valuable.  I truly enjoyed his book and learned a lot about things such as subtle judgment words: should, ought, must, abused, neglected and more. 

 

II. PRINCIPLES OF NVC

 

1. Deep communication is possible between people because we are all similar in our basic needs and desires.

 

2. A key to excellent communication is to live and to communicate from the higher physical energy centers.  This requires some explanation.

There are seven physical energy centers on every human being.  These are discussed in other articles on this website.  If one lives from the three lower energy centers, one essentially is selfish and competes with all others for food, shelter, attention, power, control and love.

However, if one can shift and live from the upper centers – four through seven – one is much less concerned just with survival, and more able to communicate and connect with others to resolve differences and disagreements.

 

3. NVC teaches people how to:

A. Remain in communication.

B. Avoid dropping down from higher level communication to lower level communication.

C. Take responsibility for our own feelings, words and actions.  This means do not project them or attribute your feelings to others.

D. Do not take responsibility for the feelings of others.  This is another trap that one must avoid.  If someone is upset with you, or with anything, it is an attribute of that person, and it is not about you, necessarily.

 

Excellent communication techniques help keep us talking from the higher energy center levels.  Poor communication methods tend to stop communication altogether, or drop it down into the lower centers or survival centers, where we tend to compete rather than cooperate to solve our problems.

 

III. THE FOUR STEPS OF ACTION

 

STEP 1. OBSERVE THE SITUATION WITHOUT EVALUATING OR JUDGING

 

The process begins by observing what is actually occurring in a situation, but not judging anyone or anything. The trick is to observe without introducing any judgment or evaluation. This is often difficult!

For example, let us say a small child refuses to clean up his room.  Rather than react, the first step is to stop for a moment and observe without judging.  This is much tougher than one might imagine.  To just blurt out, "Your room is a mess", is a judgment.   A pure observation might be: "There are five pieces of clothing on the floor and nine toys are scattered around the roomÓ.  This is not an evaluation, but just an observation.

 

Judgments include statements like "heÕs a slob", or calling someone mean, messy, needy, stupid, lazy, inconsiderate, racist, sexist, selfish, or inappropriate.  These words are basically about making another ÔwrongÕ or ÔbadÕ in some way.  They are about blame, insults, put-downs, labels, criticisms, comparisons or assessments.

Other, more subtle judgment words include the words always, never, ever, whenever, often, frequently, and seldom, when used loosely or to exaggerate.  For example, "His room is often messy", confuses observation with evaluation.  A pure observation is without comparison to the past. 

If you want to refer to the past, you could say, ÒThe room was messy three other timesÓ or you could say Òmany other timesÓ.  But adding the ÒalwaysÓ or ÒusuallyÓ word is vague often just adds a subtle judgment quality to the pure observation.

Learning to just observe without much evaluation or judgment is very difficult for most people.  In fact, it is one of the hardest steps in this process.  Most people are accustomed to moving from seeing or observing to evaluating, comparing and judging very quickly.

Learning to just observe a situation means slowing down and looking at the entire scene or process much more carefully.  One must not be in too much of a hurry in order to accomplish this.

For example, if someone stabs someone on the street corner and you observe it, you must observe the entire process, not just the stabbing.  Who spoke first, what was said, were gestures made, did someone punch the other one, and so on.  What happened after the stabbing, and so on.

Once you have formulated a non-judgmental observation, you are ready for the second step in the process.

 

STEP 2. IDENTIFY A FEELING

 

Having observed, the next step is to identify a feeling inside of you that is related to the observation.  Feelings are always related to your body, and never involve others.  Once again, this is often not easy to do. 

Many people are not in touch with their real feelings at all.  Some even pretend they have no feelings.  Learning to feel feelings and being able to say or express what they are is a chore in itself. 

In the example of the childÕs room, the parent may feel frustrated, upset, sad, lonely, depressed  or even despairing at the condition of the room.  A parent might also feel fear or anger that the child will grow up very sloppy, or that bugs or other vermin are hiding among the mess, for example.  The parent could feel anger because the parent does not want to deal with the problem because it is not enjoyable and perhaps the parent has to go to work.  The parent could feel angry because he or she does not want to clean up the mess himself or herself.

 

Many people confuse feelings with subtle judgments.  In the example above, the parent might have said something like "I feel abused, abandoned, violated, attacked, betrayed,  misunderstood, cheated, guilty, insulted, used, bothered, disappointed, neglected, or ripped off". 

These seem like feelings, but they are not.  They are judgments, because they involve another person or a situation doing something to oneself.  A huge problem in communication is to avoid using these words when describing your feelings!

 

Taking Responsibility For Feelings.  Incidents like the childÕs clothes all over the floor may set the stage for feelings, but they do not cause feelings.  Although some will deny this point, one always has a choice how one will feel.

For example, upon observing the mess of toys on the floor, the parent could say ÒI am so grateful my child at least lives at home and plays at home, not in a dangerous schoolyardÓ.  The parent might also have said, ÒI can see my child is very intelligent by all the toys that are on the floorÓ.  The parent could have said, ÒI see how bright my child is the way he can arrange all the toys on the floorÓ, and so on.

In other words, one could look at the messy room and still feel mainly gratitude, instead of upset.  One could feel other things, such as pride in how intelligent the child is, or shame about how sloppy the child is.  Any feelings are possible, in other words, and the situation itself is not the cause of the feeling, but just a trigger or incident that is neutral by itself, until the parent gives it a value or judges it in some way.  This is a critical point about our reality.

Even a rape or a robbery that might seem horrendous could have an outcome or consequence that is positive.  This happens more often than one thinks.  So the essential point is to learn to 1) observe the situation without judging, and then 2) identify a feeling inside, but not to judge anyone and do not think the situation caused the feeling in you, but rather that because of your perception, you have simply chosen to react in a particular manner.

Subtle ways that we deny responsibility for feelings include speech patterns such as "It bugs me when ..." or "That bothers me", ÒIt makes me angry whenÓ.  These phrases imply or actually state that responsibility for your feelings lie outside of yourself.   A better statement is that ÒWhen I saw your room so messy, I started to feel angryÓ.  Here, one may at least be taking some responsibility for the feeling of anger, and not simply blaming the child for causing oneÕs feelings.

Another subtle denial of responsibility for oneÕs feelings is a statement like "I felt angry when I saw your messy room.Ó  Again, this sort of implies that another is responsible for oneÕs feeling.  Instead, one could say "When I saw your messy room, I chose to respond with anger because I want the house to look neat and cleanÓ.  I realize that the difference in the wording is subtle, but it can be important.

By the way, people often are in the habit of blaming feelings and actions on anything imaginable such as dark forces, a disease or condition, authorities, group pressure, policies and rules, gender or age roles, or impulses. "I did it because I had to", "because they made me", or "because it is our policy or rule".  Denying responsibility for oneÕs actions and feelings denies oneÕs power and sovereignty, makes one the victim, and subtly blames others for oneÕs dilemmas.

 

Assuming responsibility for othersÕ feelings.  This is another trap.  It can seem like caring, but it is not! This is a huge source of conflict in relationships. 

An example of assuming responsibility for anotherÕs feelings is to say, "IÕm sorry I made you mad".  A much better statement is "When I see how mad you are, I feel sad because I want a connection with you".        

In other words, each of us always chooses and is responsible for his or her own feelings.  Strictly speaking, you cannot make another person mad, or sad or even happy, despite what you may have heard or learned from others.  You can do what you will, and the other person then chooses the feeling they wish to have.  Many people have learned this the hard way, that you cannot make others happy.  You can only do what you do, and others will choose their responses or their feelings.

Once you have identified a feeling about the situation that is not related to others, you are ready to identify a human need or desire about the situation.

 

STEP 3. IDENTIFY YOUR NEED OR DESIRE

 

The third step, after making a pure observation and properly identifying a feeling inside yourself, is to identify your need in this situation.  This is also tricky. 

A need is always about oneself, not about another. 

Also, a need, as defined here, is always a basic human quality such as a need for protection, love, caring, warmth, autonomy, respect, nurturing, intellectual stimulation, or play.  These may be called psychic or basic needs.

To understand this better, in the example of the childÕs room, the parentÕs need may be for respect or for cleanliness (protection from germs).  In contrast, however, if the parent says my need in this situation is  "That you clean up your room", the parent is not in touch with his or her needs.  To clean up a room is not a deep human need.  It is actually a request or a demand for action by another, in this case.  So it is not about the parent himself or herself, but about another, and it is not a basic desire or psychic need.

This is a very difficult area for most people.  We all have needs, or what we believe are our needs.  We all want to be loved, respected, honored, obeyed (with children), nurtured, pleasured, stroked or at least acknowledged.  These may be called the basic human needs. 

 

Inability to clearly state our needs.  Children are good at announcing their needs, though they may not be able to articulate them exactly.  They cry or scream, for example.  They hold up their little hands if they want to be held or hugged.  This, at least, gets the message across.

As we grow up, it would be excellent if we were to learn how to articulate our actual psychic needs.  One might say, I am really looking for security, or I feel the need for acknowledgment or love, or something else.

However, many of us not only did not learn how to articulate our deep needs.  We learned it is not okay to express our needs at all.  Indeed, many people learn their needs are not important, and perhaps that no one cares about them anyway.

However, remembering this aspect of our selfhood and our humanity is most important for connecting with others in deep ways.  Basic physical, emotional and mental or psychic needs are one of the ways to bring people together, as we all have them, to varying degrees. 

Getting in touch with our needs and expressing them is also the only way, in many cases, to have our deep needs met by others.  The alternative is to just wait around and hope that others will figure out our needs.  This is what many people do, in fact, in their relationships, marriages, etc. work settings, etc.  It does not work well at all!  Many people seek a Òmind readerÓ to keep them happy because they do not even know what they need or want, and depending upon others to figure out and satisfy our needs is an easy way out, but one that rarely works.

 

Three stages of recovery. Dr. Rosenthal states that many people pass through three stages of recovery as they get in touch with their needs.  In the first stage, one feels like a slave, unable to express oneÕs needs, and often feeling responsible for otherÕs needs.  For example, in this stage one may be in the habit of saying  "I have to leave now because my children (or my friends, or my parents) expect me to come home".

In the second stage, one rebels and may act obnoxious.   One may be prone to statements like, "IÕm not responsible for you".  ÒI do my thing and you do yoursÓ.

The third stage is one of maturity and liberation.  One takes responsibility for oneÕs feelings and needs, but not those of others.  This represents healthy boundaries.  One chooses to respond out of compassion, but never out of guilt, fear or shame.  One can state needs clearly and be concerned with the needs of others. "I choose to go here, but not there, because I want to".

 

Choosing your feelings.  Upon hearing a statement by another, one has four options: 1) blame the other for the feeling, 2) blame oneself, 3) sense oneÕs own needs and feelings, or 4) sense the othersÕ needs and feelings. The latter two are compassionate communication responses.

 

STEP 4. FORMULATING A REQUEST

 

The fourth step in the NVC process is to formulate a request based on oneÕs observations, feelings and needs.  A parent might make this request: "I am feeling frustrated because I have a need to protect you from illness caused by germs.  Would you be willing to clean up your room?" 

Here are some tips about formulating requests.

 

1. It is best to phrase requests positively. "Would you be willing to clean up your room?" is better than "Would you be willing to stop making a mess?"

2. Make the request as specific as possible, as in "Would you be willing to hang your clothes in the closet and take your pillow off the floor?"  This tends to be better than ÒWould you be willing to clean up the room?Ó

3. Always speak kindly, but firmly and clearly, without unnecessary emotion such as sarcasm.   For example, it would not be helpful to say ÒI am so sick of your mess, will you get going and clean it up for once?Ó

 

Requests Versus Demands.  A request is very different from a demand, but the two are often confused.  The difference is that a request is voluntary, without threats.

 Demands force the other person to submit or rebel, which stops communication.  A subtle form of demand  occurs if the person blames, judges, or lays a guilt trip if the request is not complied with.  For example, ÒYou had better clean up your roomÓ is a veiled threat and is effectively a demand because it implies negative consequences if one does not go along..

It is only a request if the one making the request can accept either a yes or no answer.  If, when asked to clean up, the child says "no" and the parent says "You never do what I tell you!", then it was a demand.

It was a request if the parent can answer, "I see that you prefer to play rather than clean up right now.  I am disappointed because I was hoping you would want to cooperate.  Would you be willing to do it after you play?" 

The goal is an honest, empathy-based relationship, not just compliance!

 

Words that indicate a subtle demand.  The words should, ought, must, or have to are often demands.  For example, a parent might say, "The room should be cleaned up".  This is a subtle demand, rather than a request. 

 

A reflective request.  An excellent type of request is to ask for reflection.  This is especially helpful if one is not sure one was heard and understood.  For example, one could say "Would you tell me what you heard me say?"  This is a request for empathy and for clarification only.  It is not to be confused with sarcasm, as in screaming at the other, "Did you hear me?"

These are the basic steps in the book, Non-Violent Communication.

 

AN EXTRA STEP OR STEP 5. OBTAIN FEEDBACK ON EVERYTHING YOU HAVE DONE SO FAR

 

This is not part of Dr. RosenbergÕs basic 4-step communication system, although he certainly suggests it.  This is a key because sometimes you are not in touch with your own feelings or those of the other person at a deep enough level.  So it is always wise to say to the other ÒHow are we doing with this conversation?Ó, or ÒAm I on the right track with this conversation?Ó or ÒTime out.  How are we doing resolving this issue?Ó 

You may be surprised at the answer you receive.  Few people ask for feedback, and so people are often taken off guard and appreciate being asked for feedback.

You can even do this with young children.  You can say to your five-year-old child, ÒWell, how am I doing in getting you to clean up your room?Ó  You might be surprised when the child blurts out that you were doing okay until you got angry, or until you said the room is always messy when that is not true.  You may learn how to communicate much better as a result.

 

WAYS TO STOP COMMUNICATION

 

The following is not in Dr. RosenbergÕs book, but is implied or discussed peripherally.  Ways that people stop communication are:

 

1. Judging.  Judging makes a person feel badly.  Judging also has a quality of finality about it, as though one knows everything about the person or situation, which is never the case.  Therefore, judgment is a powerful enemy of communication.

However, the qualities of discernment and evaluation, which are different than judgment, are needed at all times.  They do not, of themselves, stop communication.

2. Attempting to force others to feel, think or act the way one wishes.   The reason is that it is no longer a conversation.  It is Ògiving ordersÓ, which is an unequal relationship and quite unpleasant.

Ways people try to force others to agree with them or go along include demands, threats and punishments.

Even if the attempt is successful, it  often backfires, so that the person goes along from resentment, not from a desire to help or love.

3. Discussing from any of the lower levels – the first, second or third physical energy centers.  The reason is that one has left the higher levels of being (levels four through seven) where we are less selfish, and from where we can more easily draw agreement and peace.

For example, becoming too intellectual is moving your focus down to the third energy center.  Becoming angry is moving your focus down to the second energy center.  A physical attack such as hitting the person is moving to the first energy center.

4. Breaking away from the other person.  Ways people do this are becoming silent, breaking off eye contact, or walking away.

5. Saying certain words, phrases or sentences.  In some cases, the reason is just the sound of the word. 

For example, the commands, ÒStopÓ, ÒHaltÓ, Òlook outÓ, and others can end communication.  Many of these words or phrases end with T.  This sound has a finality about it that is not helpful for communication.  For more discussion  on this subject, read The Ancient Hebrew Alphabet on this website.

In other cases, certain utterances just tend to draw the conversation to a close.  For example, a strong negative reaction will do this.  It is so strong that the other person is shocked and wonÕt know how to respond. 

For instance, in a delicate negotiation between Arabs and Israelis, a shock statement of this type would be if the Israeli suddenly said, ÒI really cannot trust anyone of Arab descent.Ó

6. Redirecting to the other person.  This occurs when one tries to accuse, place responsibility or place blame with the other person.  Even if it is true, it tends to end communication.

For example, during a conversation, if the other makes a statement that is negative, the first person might say, ÒYes, but it is your fault.Ó

7. Harshness.  Harshness puts the other person on the defensive.  This tends to end communication.

8. Distracting the other person.  This is a very important way to end communication.  There are many ways to do this.  A common one is to change the subject.  Others are looking away, such as looking out the window, or staring at the person with a strange look on your face.

At times, these direct the other personÕs attention to the lower part of the body or the lower energy centers.  For example, a woman may make a sexual move or gesture such as playing with her hair or adjusting a skirt or a strap.  For some men, this redirects their attention away from her head and toward her midsection.  This, in turn, stimulates his midsection and the conversation shifts.

Many other distractions just break the intensity of the conversation and interfere with any connection that has occurred between the two people.

9. Deliberately attempting to confuse the other person.  This is done, at times, to try to win the argument instead of taking the time to win through logic and reason.  However, it usually does not work if the other person realizes it is a ploy.  The other person will then become angry, lose trust, and the entire communication will fall apart.

Confusion can occur accidentally, and this happens all the time.  When it does, one must stop and clarify the point.  However, this is a minor problem compared to a deliberate attempt to confuse and thus manipulate another.

10. Lying.  Lying during communication is deliberate sabotage.  It takes one back down into the lower energy centers, and it is violent in some ways.  It is confusing and deceptive, which means it leads a person down a false path. 

It is dreadful for real communication.  It is a common problem in man-woman relationships, business relationships, and other negotiations such as between nations.  It stops communication like nothing else does because it can break trust, or it ÒworksÓ and leads to outcomes that donÕt last when the truth comes out.

11. Gesturing in certain ways. Gestures that stop communication including folding the arms, crossing the legs, rolling the eyes, shaking the head, moving the head back, or making faces.

12. Physical violence.  This includes grabbing or hitting the other person, or worse.  It immediately puts the other person on the defensive and usually stops all further communication.

 

OTHER REQUIREMENTS OF NVC

 

1. One needs to listen well to the speech and gestures of the other persons.

2. One needs to understand the point of view of the other as deeply as possible.

3. One needs to have a certain degree of empathy for the other.

 

OTHER TOPICS RELATED TO NONVIOLENT COMMUNICATION - EMPATHY

 

Psychologist Carl Rogers wrote: "When someone really hears you without passing judgment on you, without trying to take responsibility for you, and without trying to mold you, it feels damn good."  Listening to others is Ôsaying a lotÕ.

Empathy is central in NVC.  The key ingredient for empathy, according to Marshall Rosenberg, is presence.  It involves being in the present moment and in the body.  It is a non-judgmental state in which one observes oneself and notes as well what the other person is observing, feeling, needing and requesting.  This is not easy most of the time!  One needs empathy to give empathy.  This can come from a spiritual source within, or from living with empathetic others, but is not so easy to just learn on oneÕs own.

Empathy is unfamiliar to many people.  Empathy is not the same as sympathy, which is feeling what another person is feeling.  Empathy is something else.  For example, let us review what empathy is NOT. 

 

What Empathy is Not.  When someone speaks, instead of simply empathizing, one may: offer advice, educate, console, story-tell, sympathize, interrogate, explain, correct, reassure or explain a position or feeling.

Just jumping in after someone speaks is likely to be a knee-jerk reaction to make the other person feel better by offering somehow to "fix" the situation.  This is a common response, but is often not empathy!

Women often complain that men do this to them, rather than just listening attentively.  This may have something to do with how women prefer to communicate, in contrast to how men communicate.

 

EMPATHY PRACTICE

 

Empathy demands the following order of actions:

1. First simply be present.  This means to say nothing and to listen carefully and fully, not formulating any response.

2. Respond first by paraphrasing or repeating the essence of what you heard: "What I just heard you say isÉ.". 

If you can, express what you believe you heard in terms of what you sense the other is observing, feeling, needing and requesting.

3. Then ask the person if it is okay to respond.

4. If you ask for more information, first express your own needs and feelings.  For example, you might say, "I am feeling confused by your statement.  Can you tell me more about what happened". 

5. Reflecting back emotionally-charged messages is especially powerful. This can diffuse anger and could save your life.  It may seem time-consuming, but in practice it saves time and energy by avoiding misunderstanding and expressing patience, kindness, presence and empathetic behavior.

For example, if someone screams at you that you are killing them by not listening to them, instead of taking offense, try to stay calm and repeat back to them something like ÒI sense you are very angry at me about what I didÓ.  If the person continues to scream at you, just continue to answer in the same way.  This can diffuse a very tense and even dangerous situation, according to Dr. Rosenberg.

Just stay with empathy until there is a release of tension, or until the end of the flow of the personÕs words.  Dr. RosenbergÕs phrase is: DonÕt put your ÔbutÕ in the face of an angry person.  Just empathize.  This includes empathy for a person saying "no" and empathy for silence (no answer).

One woman who attended a workshop with Dr. Rosenberg was alone on duty the next day at a homeless shelter.  A man came in asking for a bed.  When she told him they were full, he pulled a knife and in no time he was sitting on her chest with the knife at her throat.  She decided this was a good time to practice her NVC.  She kept expressing what she thought he was feeling - afraid, upset, disappointed, and frustrated.  Each time she did so, the man softened a little.  Finally, he calmed down and she was able to drive him to another shelter.

 

THE DESIRE AND INTENTION FOR COMMUNICATION

 

            This is so critical, and is not dealt with too much by Dr. Rosenberg, in my limited experience.  In fact, some people are not too interested in communicating deeply.  I would say they do not love you enough.  They just want what they want.  Children sometimes do this.  They just want their toy or their food.  They do not want to discuss the matter very much, or learn about communicating.  If you do not comply with their request, they will just irritate you until you do comply, or until you wear them out.

            The same takes place in every other situation, even international politics.  The Palestinians, for example, are not too interested in a deep discussion about Israel.  They want the Israelis out, and that is all. 

            The lack of desire for deep communication is one of the main stumbling blocks, since without desire and intention, little else will take place.  Always keep this in mind if you are not succeeding with communication.  Perhaps the other party simply does not desire much communication, no matter what they say.

 

COMMUNICATION AS LOVE

 

            A deep form of love is to be willing to communicate.  This may not sound like much, but it is.  For this reason, if a person you are with does not wish to communicate deeply and learn how to do it, they may not love you as much as they say they do.

 

BLOCKS TO EXCELLENT COMMUNICATION

 

            I have mentioned a few of these.  One must desire communication, and one must sustain the intent to communicate.  One must also have some skill, or be willing to learn communication skills, such as those suggested in this article.

            One must also stay in the present, and stay focused with communication.  Another important block is lack of time.  How can two communicate if the time is not allotted for this activity?

            Another block is an inability to think logically, or to hear properly.

            A more subtle and important problem in communication is discussed in detail below.  It is the presence of often hidden traumas in the psyche that interfere with and can completely block effective communication.

 

THE PROBLEM OF HIDDEN TRAUMAS

 

To return to the example used throughout this article, let us say the child whose room is messy was traumatized in the past by a stern parent who beat the child or screamed at the child whenever his room needed cleaning.

Such a child may encounter serious difficulty each time his parent wants his room to be cleaned up.  The child may become rebellious, or may simply shut his ears and try not to hear, or the child may impulsively start to cry, or some other response besides simply listening and responding.  This is a simple example of how a past trauma, whether it is consciously known or not, can ruin or impair communication.

In fact, most people have been traumatized at some time or another, often in very subtle ways.  Later in their lives, they wonder why some types of communication, perhaps with the opposite sex, or with the boss, or with the government, or another type, is so difficult for them.  This is the reason.

This is an enormous topic.  I want to explain it energetically to help simplify it.  It is as though communication between two people is one frequency or vibration.  An old hidden trauma is like another vibratory frequency that mixes with the first one.  The result is a mixture, or null effect, or amplification, or distortion of the original frequency or vibration that disrupts it, or may completely inhibit it.

Dealing with trauma is discussed in other articles on this website and in the text, Nutritional Balancing And Hair Mineral Analysis (2010 edition).

 

HUMOR, RELAXATION AND COMMUNICATION

 

Leaders, parents, teachers, advertisers, preachers, and others whose livelihood, success or just happiness depends upon communication know that if you can relax a person, you may have more success with communication.

This is often a key with children, for example.  Humor, silliness, jokes, and so on help people relax and can Òbreak the iceÓ to help move communication forward.

 

TIMING AND CONTEXT IN COMMUNICATION

 

This is another factor in successful communication, at times.  For example, many parents know they should not make requests of their children when the child is overtired, or angry, or rushing out the door.  Instead, it is best to wait for a quiet moment, or maybe during the childÕs favorite mealtime snack or even while the child is watching his favorite television program.  Then communication may be far easier because the child is relaxed and happy.

The same principle applies to all communication.  Wait for the right time, if possible.  Also, wait for the right context.  A parent I know says she does best communicating with her teenage daughter when they are in the car, just the two of them.  The reason is that the daughter is relaxed, away from her friends and her computer, and the two are locked up together, so to speak, which tends to favor some types of communication.

 

NUTRITIONAL BALANCING SCIENCE AND COMMUNICATION

 

This website recommends a very specific type of nutritional and lifestyle healing program called nutritional balancing science.  Among the many benefits of this particular method is often an improvement in communication ability.  The reasons for this include:

 

1. Abundant energy. Many people are simply exhausted, and have difficulty with communication for this reason.  Nutritional balancing focuses on restoring a personÕs energy and vitality at the deepest levels.  The importance of energy for communication and all human activities cannot be overemphasized.  Here are a few reasons to improve your vitality and energy:

- One is more able to take risks, which communication often requires.

- One is more able to think clearly.  Thinking requires plenty of energy.

- One is more able to stand up for what one believes.  This is also important for honest communication.

 - Energy often brings much better self-esteem and self-confidence that is vital for communication.

- People with energy are generally more positive, outgoing and interested in others.

- It requires energy to feel feelings deeply, even to feel how uncomfortable or depressed one is feeling.  This may sound odd, but I have observed it in myself and many other clients over and over again.  Without enough energy, one just shuts down or takes the easy way out.  This is even a cause for suicidal thoughts in some cases.

- People admire energy.  In the world of business, it is sometimes said that Òpeople buy energyÓ.  This assists self-esteem, but also helps both parties to engage in real communication based on mutual appreciation.

 

2. Reducing mental/emotional symptoms helps communication. Some people cannot think clearly.  They suffer from Ôbrain fogÕ, distractibility, ADD, ADHD, anxieties, depression, and other mental/emotional symptoms that seriously get in the way of excellent communication.  Most of these will lessen or disappear with a nutritional balancing program that improves overall body chemistry and removes hundreds of toxins from the brain.

 

3. Removing other imbalances. Some people are unbalanced in other, more subtle ways.  They have an unbalanced oxidation rate, unbalanced minerals and mineral ratios and patterns, they have infections that affect the brain, and more.   Many people report to me that as their health improves, they are mysteriously better at listening to others, and other aspects of communication.

 

4. Releasing deeper hidden traumas. Interestingly, a properly designed nutritional balancing program may be able to undo some deep hidden traumas.  These can be either physical or mental/emotional ones.  This is a unique ability of this program.  It stems from increasing a personÕs vitality to a sufficient degree.  Then the body suddenly begins to process the trauma on its own.  It will also make other therapies much more effective, such as counseling and others.

 

ROY MASTERS MEDITATION AND COMMUNICATION

 

Part of nutritional balancing science that can be particularly helpful for communicating is the daily practice of a type of meditation exercise originally taught by Mr. Roy Masters.  This exercise only, when done daily, can do much for anyone to improve communication ability and effectiveness.  Read the article on meditation for more details.

 

COMMUNICATION VERSUS PROPAGANDA

 

Unfortunately, the material in this article can be and is used daily by advertisers, politicians, parents and many others to coerce, manipulate and inculcate certain ideas into the minds of unsuspecting people. 

One may say that the ability to communicate is one of the most powerful weapons of war, in fact.  This science is called propaganda.  This can be defined as the use of communication skills to manipulate and control others.  for dark or evil purposes in this way.

I mention this because one must always be on guard against the Ògood communicatorsÓ, which include the likes of Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Mao Tse Tung and other very effective and murderous dictators who used communication effectively to control and manipulate millions of people, often causing their deaths.

Thus communication skill can be used for any purpose.  At least, knowing about it you can use it well, and hopefully you will see when others are using it against you, not for you.

 

CONCLUSION

 

There is more in Marshall RosenbergÕs book and tapes about expressing anger, receiving empathy, expressing appreciation, the proper use of force and punishment.  OneÕs intention to really connect is very important in NVC.  Otherwise, the best-chosen words and phrases will be hollow.  Vigilance and practice are also most important, especially until old habits have been undone.

Remember the four steps: 1) observe the situation without judging or evaluating, 2) identify a feeling in oneself, 3) identify oneÕs psychic or deep human need, and 4) formulate a request.

           

Resources

1. Rosenberg, M., Nonviolent Communication, A Language of Compassion, PuddleDancer Press, Del Mar, CA 1999.  For books, tapes, workbooks, seminars and workshops, call 1-800-255-7696 or visit www.cnvc.org.
2.
Catherine Cooley, at 805-252-6406 (California, USA), offers personal instruction in NVC.  I have never used her services, so please use your judgment and give us feedback about her if you contact her.

 

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