Revelations of talk

And what
they suggest

By William A. Johnson

[Editor’s Note: Originally published as “Tuesday Voice: Revelations of talk,” on August 4, 2015. Published again as encouragement for anyone looking to stop worrying so much, like the fictional character Goines at times lately.]

Long ago I realized that talking is more revealing than writing. We don’t edit our talk as much as we do our writing. We let things emerge that we could hide if we were writing. Psychotherapists of course gain insights into a person from these revealing disclosures. Someone says that “he would like to have done something,” and the use of the future perfect tense is a tip-off that he is highly unlikely to actually do it.

Tuesday Voice: Revelations of talk

And what they suggest

By William A. Johnson

Long ago I realized that talking is more revealing than writing. We don’t edit our talk as much as we do our writing. We let things emerge that we could hide if we were writing. Psychotherapists of course gain insights into a person from these revealing disclosures. Someone says that “he would like to have done something,” and the use of the future perfect tense is a tip-off that he is highly unlikely to actually do it.