I would be impressed if you did not know anything about the first presidential debate of 2020. It was painful to watch and read about. These are the individuals who represent all of us. Our great debate, however, isn’t about winning political battles, it is how we are going to treat each other.
I know individuals that only made it a few minutes into the 90-minute debate before having to turn it off and walk away. A week later I know folks who are still struggling to reconcile how unsettling it was to watch. It seems we had a common experience of anger, disgust, fear, and sadness in being subjected to what was likely an inevitable outcome.
Why was it inevitable? Our political candidates are a reflection of who we are as a country. They end up being a mirror for us as individuals. Ironically the concentration of the dissonance in that 90-minute conversation says more about you and me than it does the candidates themselves.
If possible, set aside the political content of the debate and just look at how the candidates treated each other. This is happening in nearly every corner of the country. It saturates our social media. It is difficult to remove it from nearly any conversation. Again, how these two men treated each other is a reflection of how we are treating each other.
If that is true, then change has to start with each individual before those chosen to represent us can change. Do you want the election to be different? Would you like for the country to be different? Then use the debate as the template of what needs to change inside of you.
Do you interrupt before someone is finished speaking?
Are you pausing to listening to the person speaking and hear what they are saying?
Do you look for a sarcastic reply to questions, or are you actually trying to answer the questions given to you?
Is your negativity clouding your ability to see the person next to you?
Do you vent on social media instead of trying to solve actual problems?
We are all doing this to some extent (even by pretending these problems don’t exist). Given how painful it was to see ourselves reflected in the “great” debate this past week, our leadership needs guidance on what to represent. For anything to change we have to take responsibility for changing ourselves first. – www.rhoadscoaching.com
finding meaning and purpose in daily life
