Bluntness By Dr Tony Alessandra
If you can’t understand this one, you’re pretty stupid… See what I mean? Most of us know better than to call other people names and insult their intelligence.
Being assertive about our opinions and beliefs is fine, but at some point, assertiveness crosses over into bluntness. And that means you haven’t taken the other person’s feelings into account.
Find out if bluntness is a problem for you. To do that simply ask five of the people closest to you at home and at work something like: “Do I come across as too blunt sometimes?” “Do I say things that hurt other people’s feelings without realizing it?” If you get back some “yes” answers, then you need to pay attention to the ways you communicate.
All of the books that we will ever need to make us as rich, as healthy, as happy, as powerful, as sophisticated and as successful as we want to be have already been written.
In her outstanding book, “Choose the Happiness Habit”, Pam Golden writes: “Take the story of two brothers who are twins. One grows up to be an alcoholic bum. The other becomes an extremely successful businessman. When the alcoholic is asked why he became a drunk, he replies, “My father was a drunk.” When the successful businessman is asked why he became successful, he says, “My father was a drunk.” Same background. Same upbringing. Very different choices.” 
I was in Sacramento, CA, and had an hour’s delay before my flight left. I walked over to the yogurt shop and ordered my favorite concoction, a mixture of the white chocolate mousse and fresh strawberries. As the lady was preparing it I was impressed with her complete thoroughness. When she presented me with the yogurt, it was completely and thoroughly blended and absolutely delicious.
I remember watching the movie “Dead Poet’s Society” when it was first released in the theaters. Robin Williams’s character is a professor who wants his students to think for themselves, so he makes them stand on top of their desks to view things in a different way. That really stuck with me.