This week I posted the “If I held a Ted Talk what would you expect it to be about” meme on Facebook. And of course as a coach there were many suggestions about personal development. But the answer that made me scream with laughter was ‘ Effective Communication Through Swearing’ !!
This person knows me well.
In my social network I am known for swearing. A lot.
(The Vikings I fight and command each with every summer will stand testament for that.)
Now as I said at first, I laughed. But my second thought was that maybe he is right.
Could swearing be good for effective communication?re
My swearing isn’t confined to my social world. I swear at work. I swear in my public speaking. In my workshops. And sometimes in my writing. Obviously I don’t do it as much as in my private life. However, swearing at work hasn’t hindered me. In fact it seems to help. Many of my colleagues know me as the person who can cut through the BS and get shit done. I am valued for my honesty.
Perhaps Swearing is good for effective communication – personally and privately
It was time for some google-fu research. And what I found amazed me.
Research is beginning to prove that Swearing is good for us!
Coming from a fairly conservative British family I was not raised to swear. I began that as a rebellious teenager. In my social conditioning swearing was bad. And yet all the evidence says otherwise.
Swearing improves our tolerance to pain.
A study published in 2011 found that swearing can increase your ability to withstand pain. Time reports that researchers believe that swearing can activate your body’s release of natural, pain-relieving chemicals that have a similar soothing effect to drugs like morphine.
Swearing gives a sense of calm
Neel Burton, a psychiatrist based in Oxford, England, said “The health benefits of swearing include increased circulation, elevated endorphins, and an overall sense of calm, control and well-being”.
According to the experts it does.
