Am I a ‘talky pants’?

“Am I a talky pants?” was the sweet question that our five year old Hazel asked Karina this week.

This hint of self awareness, or self consciousness peeking out of this curious comment was met with a bit of a white lie. “No honey, not at all!”

At age five, a non-stop torrent of curious questions about the world can be somewhat exhausting for parents and teachers, but it is natural and cute.

This did make me contemplate how frequently I wish more people asked the same question, (am I a talky pants?), if even to themselves.

• Whether you are the ‘one-upper’ at the party

• Or the general ego speaker who has to make sure everyone grasps the importance of their job.

There are so many occasions where “am I a talky pants?” may actually be the means from which actual conversation, learning, and respectful communications may emerge.

Like my colleague who suggests writing WAIT (Why am I talking?) on your hand to remind yourself to practice effective listening.

Whether you simply try to:

• Listen twice as much as you speak

• Ask twice as many questions

• Or simply invest in being fully present in conversations

The intentional implementation of these practices will make you a communication superstar that people will love associating with.

I can only imagine how cool it would be if we replaced a whole lot of “talky pants” with a healthy dose of “listen-y pants”

We just may find the world communicates a little more clearly.

• Now that's a peak ethos.