The Problem with Trumpian thinking
#45’s biggest flaw is this:
He presumes to know what is right for everyone.
It is impossible for someone to know what is right for another. This is 100% true for adults no matter what type of relationship they are in be it a coupleship, A CEO with his or her board, a Parenting relationship or the President of the United States when determining how to move forward for the Citizens of the U.S.
This is why we humans have been given a mind to communicate with and a heart to have compassion so we don’t become so arrogant to believe we know what anyone else’s truth is besides our own.
It appears that #45 thinks he does not need to negotiate or compromise because as the first sentence states, He presumes to know what is right for everyone.
Therefore, he does not need to seek counsel from organizations and people who have given counsel to the President for years.
I have worked in the area of Communication and Relationship technology for over 35 years.
I have become an expert on what is necessary in order for someone to communicate clearly. Clear Communication is part and parcel of Healthy Relationships.
Advanced communication techniques can be taught and practiced so that it is possible to learn to communicate in a healthy way. The essence of clear communication can be summed up in the following 4 steps
- Connect with your own Truth, not someone else’s truth or what you think the other wants from you but connect with your own truth
- Set Good boundaries so you can speak your truth from your side, and then be willing to also listen to the other’s truth
- Learn at least one Communication technique that can be pulled out if things get rocky. 3 examples of these techniques would be: The Feedback Wheel, Non-Violent Communication, Crucial Conversations.
- Be willing to negotiate and compromise.
When we use these 4 steps, we can arrive at solutions that can work for everyone. Each side is open and receptive to the right solution rather than his or her own solution.
One of the main reasons I have always been offended by #45 is his apparent unwillingness to listen to and receive feedback from those around him. One reason he has attracted such a following is that it can seem easier to let someone else make the decisions. It can seem easier to delude ourselves into believing that someone else knows what is best for us. And his followers who acted like this actually reinforced his arrogant thinking that he has the ability to know what is right for everyone. It is tragic too that someone who has never held a position in public service can believe he knows what is best for anyone other than himself.
This is the problem with Trumpian thinking: It violates the reason we have all been given our own mind and heart. And until #45 chooses to understand this, his Presidency will not succeed.