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Admit You Don’t Know

It’s okay to admit you don’t know something. In a good conversation, the two partners are trying to find the truth together, not score debate points. Don’t make things up just to respond.

First posted October 13, 2018

Suggested:

Our hero: I know abortion is a difficult subject, but I’d love to have a calm and reasonable conversation with you. I know we both want to help people, and we both want to do what’s right. I bet we can both learn from each other!

Person 1: Abortion obviously kills a human. How are pro-choicers so dumb? Person 2 (our hero): Pro-choice people are usually quite reasonable. I know I’ve been wrong about important things before, even though I wanted to do what’s right.

Person 1: So that’s why I’m pro-choice. Person 2 (our hero): Thanks for explaining. I think I get it, but I want to make sure I understand your view correctly. Let me ask a couple questions to clarify.

Person 1: Nobody knows when life begins. Person 2 (our hero): I want to be sure I know what you mean by that. Are you talking about the start of a biological organism? Or the start of a valuable person?