Article Link: http://www.exchangepress.com/article/too-much-whin-ing/5016060/
�" Situation �"For the past few years the parents in my Positive Discipline parenting classes have chosen whining as their #1 problem. The reason whining is #1 on most parents’ lists is that it resembles personalized water torture. That steady drip-drip-drip that can drive one mad is mild compared to the effect of little Agatha’s daily dose of whine on her listeners.
I try to write about issues that are bothering folks the most, but whining had me stuck. I would say to myself, “But I don’t know what to say about whi-i-i-n-ing!” Then I listened to what I was saying. Whoa! That’s right. I was whining! My first revelation was �" whining is not restricted to children. Excellent! I was on to something �" but what?
�" Solution �"
What is whining and why do people do it? The basic formula is �" whine enough and others will: leave you alone, quit bothering you or asking you to do something you don’t want to do, give you what you want, or change their behavior in some way to get you to stop whining. No wonder whining is universal. It works!
Communication: Mistaken goals
At its most basic, whining is communication. The problem is that ...