How To Overcome The Spiral Of Silence And Win

Quote of the day: 

In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends. -Martin Luther King, Jr.

Public opinion is a term often bandied about especially in political discussions. But what does it actually mean, as opposed to perhaps having a private opinion?. Well it is the opinion shared by majority of the people collectively -basically the views, attitudes and beliefs shared by many people about a particular topic or event.

On the other hand you have what is called the 'Spiral of Silence'. A theory proposed by the German political scientist Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann, it basically refers to the tendency for some people to remain silent when they feel that their views may not be heard by the majority. These people have a fear of being isolated, resulting from the idea that social groups or the public in general may neglect or exclude them due to their personal opinions. One tool that encourages self-censorship to happen online is social media.

This spiral of silence can be seen everywhere, and it can happen to anyone if its taken outside the context of politics and merged into everyday life it still holds true. For instance, who hasn't kept silent in a class discussion for fear of being ridiculed by peers or not being heard, or in office environment or at a family gathering, and a dozen or more instances where we felt isolated and unable to raise our voice against the status quo for fear of appearing different, going against the norm and the majority who rule everything. Having a collective opinion on something does not automatically make it correct. Neither does it make its dominance supreme.

This fear can go on to translate into our everyday lives. We grow up in this spiral of silence, a little seed planted a long time ago and growing slowly as time goes by. We fear something, so we don't do it. We fear isolation, so we never speak up. We see actions being perpetrated and our mouths remain shut, we get treated badly and smile, we fear rejection so we suppress our feelings, and on and on it goes like a roller coaster.  It all begins at a time and place often in our subconsciousness. When we have the support of others, or the majority we often voice our opinion with confidence. On the other hand when we feel no support forthcoming we stay in the back of the room away from prying eyes.

It is time to be heard. Time to say things as they truly are, straight from the heart, forming an opinion that is wholly yours. Not suppressing thoughts or feelings but letting it out into the universe. Go from a spiral of silence and fear to a spiral of confidence and happiness. Even if you are the only person in the room with a different opinion -then so be it. If you have to speak up for yourself or the people you value, I believe that nothing should stand in the way to your victorious win. Your opinion is as relevant as that of any majority -if you are part of the group, good, if not, even better.

On another note, each month is no different from the last, give or take a couple of hours. A new month has a way of tip toeing behind you in surprise leaving you pondering how fast the previous month went. The fireworks from ushering in the new year still resonates, but then again half the year is gone, and time has no brakes or break on this journey of life. You do what you have to do to survive. Finding the correct balance between work and life is tied to how you manage time effectively -a topic for another post really. It is about time you take back control of your life, do away time wasting and irrelevant pursuits that often lead nowhere. Of course, not being able to deal with time can lead to work overload and stress -which then leads to other things, creating a spiral of its own. Yes, that spiral just won't go away.

Happy July.


Peace. Love. Light* 



Current Listen: Yaël Naïm - Toxic