What Is Psychologists’ Favorite Word? Embracing this word opens you to deeper understanding and mental flexibility.
Your perspective and their perspective
In conflicts, people often waste a lot of time and energy arguing about who is right or wrong. This tends to go nowhere. A more useful approach is to recognize that different people have different perspectives, all of which can be valid, even if they contradict one another.
This use of “and” recognizes that we can understand and respect someone else’s perspective, even if we don’t agree with it. For example, we can acknowledge, “I would never deliberately try to hurt you and my actions did hurt you” or “I like to be spontaneous and you prefer to make plans.” When we move past right or wrong toward empathy and respect, we’re in a better place to move forward together.