Willingness To Listen

Viktor Frankl, one of the great psychiatrists of the twentieth century, survived the death camps of Nazi Germany. His little book, Man’s Search for Meaning, is one of those life-changing books that everyone should read.

Frankl once told the story of a woman who called him in the middle of the night to calmly inform him she was about to commit suicide. Frankl kept her on the phone and talked her through her depression, giving her reason after reason to carry on living. Finally she promised she would not take her life, and she kept her word.

When they later met, Frankl asked which reason had persuaded her to live?
"None of them", she told him.
What then influenced her to go on living, he pressed?

Her answer was simple, it was Frankl’s willingness to listen to her in the middle of the night.

A world in which there was someone ready to listen to another's pain seemed to her a world in which it was worthwhile to live.

Often, it is not the brilliant argument that makes the difference. Sometimes the small act of listening is the greatest gift we can give.

Listen to Everyone.

Triple Filter

One day a person met the great Chanakya,  and said, "Do you know what I just heard about your friend?"

"Hold on a minute," Chanakya replied.

"Before telling me anything I'd like you to pass a little test. It's called the Triple Filter Test."

"Triple filter?"

"That's right," Chanakya continued.

"Before you talk to me about my friend, it might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you're going to say. That's why I call it the triple filter test.

The first filter is Truth.

Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?"

"No," the man said, "actually I just heard about it and..."

"All right," said Chanakya. "So you don't know if it's true or not.

Now let's try the second filter, the filter of Goodness.

Is what you are about to tell me about my friend something good?"

"No, on the contrary..."

"So," Chankaya continued, "you want to tell me something bad about him, but you're not certain it's true.

You may still pass the test though, because there's one filter left, the filter of Usefulness.

Is what you want to tell me about my friend going to be useful to me?"

"No, not really."

"Well," concluded chankaya, "if what you want to tell me is neither true nor good nor even useful, why tell it to me at all?"

Use this triple filter each time you hear loose talk about any of your near and dear ones.

It is worth applying in everyone's life.

Always speak what is worth...
Speak what is good...
Filter Yourself...
Be true....
Live Happy Always....