What are you for?

Martin Luther King Jr.’s most famous speech wasn’t, “I’ve got a lot of problems with you people.”

No, his words projected a glorious destination with the affirmation, “I have a dream!”

These days, we seem to spend a lot of time and mental energy letting others know what were are against.

Politicians pointing fingers at all the missteps of “the other side.”

Aunt Betty or Uncle Billy posting article after article on Facebook with nothing more than a mad-face emoji as the comment.

There’s a reason the phrase “cancel culture” is even a thing. There are a lot of people out there trying to make other peoples’ lives miserable simply because they disagree.

But what is it all for?

Because if I take a step back and observe, it appears that more often than not, whenever we voice opposition to something, we have no end goal in mind. We simply throw our negative opinion out into the ethos, often to the benefit of only one thing: our ego.

Rarely does it produce anything more than another voice tossed into the echo chamber of our lives. The people who agree with us give it a thumbs-up reaction and maybe leave a banal comment like “THIS!”

And the people who disagree roll their eyes. Or they respond, “You're an idiot.”

No one wins. Nothing is accomplished. No goals are achieved.

Recently, I had a tweet catch a little bit of buzz. I can’t say it “went viral” because even though I’m not sure what constitutes virality, I’m pretty sure 44 likes isn’t it.

Nevertheless, it was a greater response than my social media missives usually receive. The tweet read:

I have a theory that if we collectively made more of an effort to voice what we are for rather than argue what we are against, we’d discover most of us actually want the same outcomes.

And then we could co-create new solutions to big problems.

What if instead of constantly arguing what you are against, which is destined to push others away from you, you committed to shedding light on what you are for?

Remove the tendency to insert condescension and assumptions, and just offer the positive.

There's a world of difference between this:

“I believe Republicans are trying to rig elections because they can’t get people to fairly support their ideas, so we need to do everything we can to disrupt their efforts to reform our elections.”

And this:

“I believe every American has the right to easily and securely vote in our elections without threat or interference.”

Which viewpoint brings together more people? Which perspective offers a chance to get others to agree? Which stance provides a vision — and an outcome — where we can work backwards to solve big issues in new and creative ways?

The answer is obvious.

And because I feel I have to provide a certain level of nuance lest my views get taken out of context, let me say this: Yes, there are times where we must stand against views, ideologies, and actions that are outright wrong — where people must be called out for their bad actions.

But even then, let us project more of what we are for — as a goal or destination that can be reached in the face of immoral or unjust actions.

Project a vision, a purpose, a dream.

I challenge you: Think about what you are for rather than what you are against, and begin adopting this perspective when vocalizing your opinions.