Black, white and the in between

There's a saying that things aren't always black or white, sometimes there's a lot of grey. I tend to gravitate toward this saying, but it's hard to say with a straight face sometimes, now that our society has been introduced to "50 Shades of Grey". It's funny how an awful book can ruin things sometimes.

Anyway, I was having a discussion with a colleague yesterday and it made me realize how far I've come personally and also with how people perceive me. Those of you that have known me for awhile probably remember when I was hot headed, get annoyed and frustrated at EVERY LITTLE THING and my view is always right.

Now, this isn't to say that I don't have those tendencies still. Because I do. And I recognize that. However, over time, I've had a lot of experience dealing with people - kids, adults, tweens, teenagers. It's amazing what teenagers can teach you. But what I've learned during that time is that many times, there's not a "right" or "wrong" answer. There are some beliefs that I have that are hardcore and not changing. But in most things, there's just a difference of opinion and views. But those differences are what can make something huge and impactful. If we'd put aside our stubbornness (yes, I am quite stubborn) and realize that we don't all have the same views and that's ok, I bet we'd be able to solve the problems of the world.

But right now, I see a lot of screaming from one side about how there is no good to taxes. I see a lot of screaming about how my view is the right view. But what we need to look at is how do we hold our beliefs, but still be flexible and listen to others? How do we put the right questions and model to the situation that will work best at that time? How do we take our beliefs and look at the long term consequences and what's best for everyone?

I can't answer all these questions. But I do think that as people that come from very different backgrounds and styles, we need to each ask ourselves these questions.