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How can one put to practice St. James’s advice “to be slow to speak”. Can you help with some ideas on how to reflect first before talking?

Sometimes, when we talk too much and listen too little, we communicate to others that we think our ideas are much more important than theirs. Or when asked a question, we answer swiftly because again we always have the answer. We should reverse this process. Put a mental stopwatch on your conversations and keep track of how much you talk and how much you listen. Learn to listen more, speak less and give short answers. Some people train themselves to count to ten before answering. Always have in mind this thought: if the Lord were present before me right now, what would be my answer? Although we know that He is actually present at all times, we just tend to overlook this fact.