Inviting Different Perspectives How changing a few words can make conversations feel more open and exploratory

I recently posted the above quotation on LinkedIn from a thoughtful Substack piece by Rod J. Naquin about inviting disagreement into conversations.

Rod used the phrase:

Let’s hear from someone who disagrees.

I found myself instinctively changing it to:

Let’s hear from someone who sees this differently.

I much prefer that wording.

“Disagrees” can feel confrontational and binary. “Sees this differently” feels more exploratory. It invites another perspective without immediately creating sides.

Whether in the classroom or the workplace, small shifts in language like this can completely change the tone of a conversation.

Midjourney

Public Domain