Have you ever heard that from a teenager? If you’re a parent, I’m sure you have! I think we can all remember saying that to mom or dad at some point. I can still think of some people who I could say that to!
A friend of mine on Facebook posted the chart below today and it got me thinking about how important it is to really understand each other. For example: It took me a year (ask my wife, I’m a slow learner) to realize when my Senior Pastor says, “Mike, staff meeting in five minutes” what he really means is, “Mike, I’m ready for staff meeting now, but I don’t want to be rude and demand your presence immediately.” While I’m still usually the straggler of the three of us, I now realize that I should finish up what I’m doing and head in to his office as soon as I can wrap things up.
What are some of your sayings that seem to mean one thing while you really mean something else? What are some things your son/daughter/friend says that seems to mean something different?
Understanding each other is hard work, but it is possible.
Parents – Are you taking studying your teenager to learn what they care about?
Teenagers – Are you studying your parents to figure out what makes them tick?
PS: Much to my wife’s delight, I think this chart means I should move to England immediately, because I pretty much fall in line with what the middle column.
