We all know that guy. The one who says every-thing that comes to their mind and often what comes out is insult-ing to other kids in the class. Being the daughter of two teachers, this hap-pens a lot. I hear a slip of the tongue about one of my parents, and I get hurt and upset about it.
One thing that I have learned is that it is often best to keep my opin-ions quiet, or when I do say what I want to say, I do so tactfully. What is tact? By definition, tact is a keen sense of what to do or say in order to maintain good relations with others or avoid offense.
As Wes said in his article, “Why? The Importance of Under-standing Your Opinions,” it’s great to have an opinion, but there is a time and a place for everything. When a person starts venting, or just says how they feel about something, they should be mindful of those around them. A person shouldn’t start talking about how stupid football players are in a sports bar. That’s untactful and plain rude.
A lot of people do this, and it’s not something that is condemning. It’s rude. There was a person who was talking really rudely about my father one day in one of my classes. Now I’ll be the first to admit, as a teenager, I’m not always the biggest fan of my dad.
But it’s one thing when I, his daughter, feel this way and complain about my dad. It’s completely differ-ent when a student starts talking about him in such a negative way. Needless to say, I was upset about it for a few days because regardless of anything, that math teacher a bunch of kids hate is my father.
As we are growing up and matur-ing into young adults, we are encour-aged to develop opinions on all situa-tions. We are encouraged to share those opinions with everyone we en-counter. Some people are great with tactfully expressing these opinions. Other people will shove it down your throat and make you feel like crap for being different.
For those of you who fall under the second description, I have one thing to say to you. You can catch more flies with honey than vinegar.
In order to get farther in life, you need to learn how to associate with people and be able to handle differing opinions. If you want people to hear you and your opinions, you have to express yourself in a good manner. You have to be diplomatic and not insult people.
Yes, having a different opinion can cause people to be upset with you, but they won’t be nearly upset if you voice your opinions in a friendly way.