Debating in chats
I'm very bad in chats: – I write too much; sometime I misread the others; – I like to speak about high-level/philosophical things where there can be contrasting point of view; – sometime I speak about things I studied, but I never used in practice, only because I like the paradigm/design decisions;
But at least, often I'm quick to recognize when I'm wrong, and being sorry.
Some lessons I learned: – if a reply seems stupid/illogical, read it 2-4 times, for being sure you really understood it, and in case ask for clarifications, i.e. read more – write less; – if the answer is complex, first give the short and direct answer, adding details and motivation later, otherwise very few will follow the discussion in the chat; – there is no problem in admitting of being wrong, if there is intellectual honesty; – a discussion is a step by step process versus an agreement and/or some middle ground where everyone knows the position of the other; – if it is not the case above, then the discussion has become a “people problem”; – if there is no intellectual honesty, it is futile to continue the debate;