S'more Civility: A Guide

Communication

Body Language

If over 70% of our communication is non-verbal, we should start here first. Afterall, we do not want to be misunderstood, either.

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Connect with the speaker through eye contact and gestures. Does your body indicate that you are listening for understanding? Can you keep eye contact while still having a neutral expression?

Be aware of your own behavior and physical movements. Notice how you are sitting now? How you are reacting when opposing voices speak. Do you shift in your seat? Does your breathing change? Are your arms in an open position?

Convey emotions with facial expressions. Be mindful not only of eye-rolls, smirks, huffs, and dismissive expressions, but also of agreeable expressions like laughter, smiles, or nodding.

Conversation

Share Your Opinion using:

I believe that… In my opinion… The main point I want to make is…I strongly feel that… I agree/disagree because… It seems to me that… From my perspective…

Support your Points using:

Research has shown that… Let me provide an example…

Studies reveal that… One clear example is…

Experts agree that… Statistics show that…

Respond to Opponent using:

You’ve raised an interesting point, but… I see your point, but I think… While I understand your argument, I believe… You’re making a valid argument, however… I agree to some extent, but… That may be true, but…

While I respect your view, I disagree because…

Agree using:

I share the same view… That’s a valid point…

I support your argument… I see where you’re coming from…

Disagree using:

I can’t agree with that… I see it differently… That’s not the whole picture… I have a different opinion… I would argue against that…

Give Counterarguments using:

On the other hand… However, there’s another side to this… But let’s not forget that… There’s another argument to consider… Let’s think about this from a different angle… While that’s true, we must also consider…

An alternative view is that… It’s also important to note that… A better solution might be…

Ask for Clarification using:

Can you explain that further? Could you clarify what you mean by…? I don’t quite understand, could you elaborate? What exactly do you mean by that? Could you give an example? Can you explain your reasoning?

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