3,244 Quotes About Communication

I once heard the word 'conversation'described as a progression of exchangesbut there is no progress hereso maybe I will instead compare thisto the bullet drop—the idea that if you shoota gun & drop a bullet from the same locationthey will hit the floor at the same time, hundreds of feet apart.("The Lover as a Dream")

For though a very few hours spent in the hard labour of incessant talking will dispatch more subjects than can really be in common between any two rational creatures, yet with lovers it is different. Between them no subject is finished, no communication is ever made, till it has been made at least twenty times over.

Large and obscure words tax mental resources too much, interrupting you from making your point and disconnecting you from your audience. That’s why simplicity in speech is valued and used by people in the most important fields, like tech and politics.

You don't realize how language actually interferes with communication until you don't have it, how it gets in the way like an overdominant sense. You have to pay much more attention to everything else when you can't understand the words. Once comprehension comes, so much else falls away. You then rely on their words, and words aren't always the most reliable thing.

During the flames of controversy, opinions, mass disputes, conflict, and world news, sometimes the most precious, refreshing, peaceful words to hear amidst all the chaos are simply and humbly 'I don't know.

Make it so obvious even a computer couldn't be confused.

It takes one to tell, and two to missunderstand.

It is often by our bullshit that we reveal our allegiance. Our words convey a sense of belonging to a particular club. And because it is a subtle form of communication, it is harder to fake that an explicit statement of loyalty.

Empathy heals shame; sympathy exacerbates shame. We don't want people to feel sorry for us; we want people to be with us.