I was a little unsure about the topic
I struggled and stressed over what to say,
so I didn’t offer one
Badminton Coaches need an opinion!
Many years ago a coach asked me for my opinion
I didn’t answer; they said that I was “Sitting on the fence”
Ok, I did respond eventually, and yes, I was “sitting on the fence” and gave a very safe answer.
This phrase describes a person’s lack of decisiveness, the desire to remain neutral or a hesitance to choose between two sides.
Sometimes people believe that their opinion may upset the person asking the question, and they want to remain on good terms with them.
They don’t want to be seen to take a side or create an argument (discussion).
My avoidance of giving an opinion came from
Deciding that I didn’t have enough knowledge to have an opinion
Not wanting to create disagreement with the other coach
Thinking that the best discussion came from being neutral and listening to someone
I didn’t realise that I was limiting my opportunity to maximise new learning
What do you do?
If you are asked a question and you have a viewpoint do you state it?
Would you do that even if you believed that it could be an alternative to one from the person asking?
Consider if you deliberately consider the effect of your answer before talking. Maybe you avoid stating a position and give a ‘neutral’ reply with the thought that it’s the best way to start a discussion.
How often do you say “well it depends“ but then don’t state what it would depend on?
Or
Are you happy with giving your viewpoint?
Maybe you believe that it’s an important starting point in any discussion for all parties to hear each other’s thoughts. Do you apply any consideration to how you phrase your replies and deliberately select your words and phrases?
After giving your opinion do you ever consider asking “It would be great to hear what you think, and if it’s an alternative view I’m interested in hearing more”
Maybe you do need to ask that question in case the other person is already sitting on the fence ! 🙂
Are your opinions best kept to yourself?
Is it best not to have a strong opinion but to be open to all ideas?
I was offered this advice by a coach who became a great friend
- You need to have an opinion, and force yourself to take a position – although you don’t have to tell anyone
- Having an opinion, any opinion is a starting point and will enable reflection – either alone or with others
- If you believe you don’t know enough say so then seek to work with others to gain more knowledge – you can work alone but working collaboratively is often better.
- Be prepared to justify and back up your thoughts with evidence – evidence from multiple sources is always best.
- If others challenge you, ask yourself what it would take for you to change your opinion – are others offering information that you need.
By not sharing you may be missing out
on the joy of collaborative working
Do you want a conversation?
I’d like to hear from you if you have a viewpoint on anything that you’ve read
We don’t need to agree, but explore viewpoints.
It would be great to hear from you, send me an email : contact@badmintonandy.com
This is part of a series of conversation starters.
Although not in detail, the posts are written to get you thinking and talking with others.
