When we speak, we’re either 1) trying to change something, or 2) getting something off our chest.
Almost all our communication can be placed in one of these categories. We either want the world to be different, and we’re communicating what we want changed, or we want to share how we feel about a certain situation.
Even if the rule is a tad simplistic, it’s a helpful thought experiment to try and understand the motivations behind our own—and other’s—communication.