There is an art to timing. Knowing when, where, and how to say something is magical. When the timing is right, listening and dialogue follows. Some measure the effectiveness of how one times something by the result. If your proposal is accepted, the timing must be right. If others agree, your timing is good. The conclusion is this; if you win, then the process was a good one.
My experience suggests that timing is about heart listening and the conversation that follows this. In the end, good timing is not about manipulating another so that they reach the right conclusion.
There is more to timing than just listening.
Alert someone to a problem too early and it does not seem like a problem. Great timing does not eliminate the need to educate and prepare. Timing is a connection between understanding and opening the door to hear something more.
Catching someone when they are focused on something else does not open a door to a difficult subject. Timing is more than simply an opportunity. Timing is a link between opportunity and a conversation that both parties are able and willing to hear.
Passionately presenting the issues does not always trigger the response you are looking for. Getting the timing right does not provide an open pass to the subject. Being passionate can be an alternative form of verbal bullying. Timing connects the idea of conviction with gentle sharing.
When everything comes together, difficult questions are asked and considered. In one case, a man unfairly arrested waited to confront the soldiers involved. Even then, his timing included the magical elements. “When they got to the barracks and were about to go in, Paul said to the captain, ‘Can I say something to you?’” (Acts 21.37)
I am facing a tsunami of challenges and opportunities. Presently, I know two things. I feel like I am drowning. I know that the timing is right some ideas and not for others. The art in your life and mine lies in knowing which is which. The cliché live on, timing is everything.
