Don’t Bring a Knife to a Book Club

Sean Connery taught us not to bring a knife to a gun fight.
Don’t bring a knife to a book club, either.

What I mean is, maybe don’t approach every conversation like it is going to be a debate. Don’t crouch in the corner, selecting and sharpening your facts and logic.

Preparing for a knife fight prepares you for a knife fight. You will show up that way. Some of the others will sense it. And if things do get tense, it will be too easy to pull your weaponized facts, which is “Bringing facts to a feelings fight.” Since it is not a debate, there is no judge to tell everyone that you won, so you won’t win.

But what if someone pulls a knife? You do remember that it’s a metaphor, don’t you? Yes, words can cut feelings and souls. And we can learn to deflect, de-escalate, and disarm.