Every one of your day to day conversations is an opportunity to express your thoughts and perspective. Not only does it allow others to know the real you, but it also gives you a chance to learn things about yourself. The word “interesting” is probably holding you back.
Photo by Alan Levine.
Your friend finishes describing something they’re passionate about, and you nod your head and follow up with, “That’s interesting.” Sounds pretty normal, right? But as Alyse Kalish at Medium explains, your attempt to be neutral or polite contributes nothing to the conversation or your own projected perspective. In fact, the word “interesting” has become almost meaningless, and has morphed into a somewhat less-insulting way to say you don’t care about what someone said, but you acknowledge that they spoke. Kalish suggests you swear off the word entirely:
The reason is simple: I like honesty. Honesty is productive — it shows that you actually listened to someone, then took the time to think through what he or she said in order to craft a thorough and useful response.
The next time your friend starts talking about their passion, or anything else, you’ll have to say what you really think. This will make you more in tune with your emotions and allow you to have more productive interactions in general. So, when it’s your turn to talk, don’t just say something is interesting, say why and how it’s interesting to you.
This Word Has Zero Meaning — Yet, You Probably Already Used it Today [Medium]
Comments
2 responses to “Boost Your Emotional Intelligence By Ditching The Word ‘Interesting’”
Hmmm… interesting article… *ponders*
May you live in interesting times…
Is it so easy to boost my emotional intelligence?