Willing to disagree

You cannot weed out bad ideas or bring good ones to the surface without debate.

You cannot debate without being willing to disagree.

Elements such as power dynamics and the reverence you may hold for others at the debate table can make disagreement uncomfortable at times, and that’s okay — this is a totally human response.

Instead of having this arise as a point of friction in the middle of a discussion, try acknowledging these feelings and explicitly deciding that you are willing to disagree and defend your stance in advance.

If your ideas do not make it through, at least you know they were given a fair chance.

And better yet, you know that the ideas that did make it really are worth pursuing.