Switched On, Not Connected

Switched On, Not Connected 

We've been trying to get our sound system properly connected lately. Turntable, soundbar, phone, all of it meant to work together, and half the time it doesn't. Turn one thing on, and something else drops out. Everything's technically switched on, and none of it's actually talking to each other yet.

You have to go slowly. Check each connection before you turn the volume up. Skip that step and you get noise, or silence, or half the sound missing, and you can spend ages trying to fix a problem that was never really about the speakers at all.

Conversations work the same way. You can be technically switched on, present, nodding along, and still not actually be connected to what the other person is saying. Especially when part of you is already forming your answer before they've finished.

Responding fast can feel like being helpful. Getting properly connected first actually is.

It's harder on a full day, when there's no spare minute to give. But answer before you're actually connected, and you end up responding to a signal that never quite came through properly, then wondering later why the whole thing didn't land.

A few things worth checking before you turn the volume up:

"Am I actually connected to what they're saying, or just switched on?"

"What assumption am I making right now that I haven't actually checked?"

"Am I listening to understand, or am I listening to respond?"

Next time someone's telling you something that matters, what would it look like to get properly connected before you say a word?

Get connected this week
Mary-Anne 😊