The Insanity of Being Misunderstood

I used to say my biggest fear in life was rejection, I’ve now found an even bigger fear and frustration…Misunderstanding.

I’m a communicator, so it should be easier for me to get my point across, but that is not always the case. Too many times this giant blob of confusion comes between me the person I am trying to communicate with, and that blob makes a mess out of things. Even when the message is simple, something like, “Are you having a good day?” Then the blob gets involved and the person thinks I am assuming they are not allowed to have a good day or even worse that they are supposed to be having a bad day.

I’ve been trained on how to communicate with people, how to get my message to the receiver, how to receive messages myself with the most clarity, and how to minimize misunderstanding. The other difficulty however, lies in non-communication. Meaning, I say something and there is no response. Ahhhhhhhh!!! This is the worst form of communication for me, silence.

In this case, what does silence mean? I don’t think people understand sometimes how silence can be maddening to a communicator. I mean at least if they said something, then there would be a chance for rebuttal, for explanation, for interaction, for understanding, or even for frustration. To say nothing though…now that speaks amazing volumes. Creates its own kind of cacophony. It allows the mind to wonder and come up with so many ideas about what the answer is but leaves no explanation for the truth.

It feels like a misunderstanding that you can’t do anything about. Nothing…nothing can be done and your hands are tied. You have to sit there and wonder did they really get it? Hoping that the silence can be broken and wondering if there can be understanding.

If you let it, misunderstanding can take over your life. You find yourself constantly wondering if that statement came out okay. Did I really tell them what they needed to know? Have I really heard what they are saying? Is there part of the message they didn’t share, that could cause me to understand better? Could I have said anything more to help them understand what I was saying?

That is when misunderstanding is insanity. You may never know if you or anyone else has communicated fully the thoughts and ideas you meant to get across. Maybe we never do, maybe we just continue to try until it gets close enough to the truth. Why does it feel though as if I may never be understood to the fullest and may never understand anyone else as they mean to be understood? That thought to me is insanity.