In order to comprehend any interpersonal drama, it helps to be able to begin to “walk in the other’s shoes.” Once we see/feel “where a person is coming from,” our judgment against them — likely based on incomplete information — and/or, on a too-narrow perspective — dissolves into empathy.
This practice, of “walking in the other’s shoes” — utilized to create peace — can also be utilized to a very different effect. Here, no matter how persuasive the argument one presents, or how much one would like to empathize with another’s point of view, the other just keeps hammering away from their own stuck, judgmental position.
Here, we refer to a martial art technique, as in Aikido: where one utilizes the opponent’s energy against them; or, a variation: Sun Tzu’s The Art of War: “why destroy an enemy who is the process of destroying himself”?
In the first situation, we are honestly attempting to smooth out a conflict situation; in the second, we are forced, if we want to save our own skin, to employ a technique the other may well be unprepared for.
Two examples, of the latter, both of which might be useful to some during these perilous times.
For the first, here’s the predicament:
And here’s the aikido move:
Again, check this out! What Jim Jordan did when Nancy Pelosi refused to allow him to join her so-called investigation into the January 6th “insurrection.”
Jordan Demands Investigation Into Pelosi, Wants To Know Her Role At Capitol
To summarize: The intent of “walking in the other’s shoes” is to bring a peaceful resolution to a formerly stuck polarity. On the other hand, the intent of utilizing the other’s energy is to “flip the script,” and gain advantage over the other.
In either case, the “tables turn,” in the sense that the drama suddenly transforms, either to dissolve the original polarity or, to shift power from one pole to the other.
