The Things You Do “Before”

Before you speak, think.
As you think, consider the cons and pros.
As you consider, realize you don’t have all the facts.
As you realize, maybe you should keep your thoughts to yourself for a while.

Let it perc—stew on it for a while. Give time to think it through. Don’t open your mouth and insert your foot. Where’s your filter? It should be, “Measure twice, cut once.” Wait. That’s for cutting some wood. Oh, well. It still fits the thought.

When you start the flow, no matter how they leave your personage, your words often show you have no clue about the whole. A tweet made in anger can not be withdrawn, like those words you speak into the ether. We may erase words on a page, but those readers will probably recall it all verbatim.

In this cancel culture, it’s not just about your words in the present, but also those you uttered at a different place and time of life. Did “they” reveal the “you” today? Perhaps. But in the interim, you could have experienced something life-changing. Can you undo the past? No. We’re not God, forgetting our sins as far as the east is from the west. (Psalms 103:12). We remember the hurts, experience the pain, again, and struggle with the memories.

What was that guy’s name who spoke wrong about others, took ownership of his mistake, and quit his once-in-a-lifetime job anyway? Hmmm… All you have to do is look up the history of yesterday’s news. (10/12/21) There may be more before this season is past.

That’s why, when I write an email, I do something else before I send it. It allows my subconscious time to analyze my words and intention in the background. I’ve been known to take days before I send a reply.

There are too many paths to write about this thought, but the idea is sincere. Think, before you speak.

“Before you speak, ask yourself:
Is it kind,
is it necessary,
is it true,
does it improve the silence?”
~Sathya Sai Baba