Humility

A funny thing happened today and this is the first time I use #linkedin for a not blatantly obvious "hey, we are a cool company, wanna join us" thing :)

I woke up in the morning with an extremely sore throat and my voice was practically gone! All I could do was whisper and I noticed that the sound of running water when my kids were brushing their teeth made my whispering inaudible!

I felt so - honestly - helpless and retreated inside myself, trying to save-up strength for maybe one good chat throughout the day (didn't happen) or at least some instructions to the kids. And all the time, I was there watching, feeling unable to express myself as if I was a simple spectator of my own life.

And then it hit me! I can't imagine how many people's voices I overshadowed with my own over the years. How many colleagues, friends, acquaintances, etc., I more or less reduced to a similar position, just because of better arguments, ideas, soft skills and such.

Maybe it is just rambling of an over-excited mind that can't cope up with speech deprivation, but I am somewhat glad I had this experience. Not being able to be heard over trickling water or a creaking chair, over my guinea pig's (Lily) chewing noises (!) is something that made me feel altogether different about the people I interact with every day.

I don't expect this post to strike many chords, but at least I will be changing my point of view starting today...