Was I helping ? Or was I preaching ?

In my enthusiasm to get my message over, I sometimes get a bit preachy. And sometimes, I do confess, I am also apt to push the envelope a bit. I admit this, and hope my friends accept that it's all with the best intentions. I hope to open doors in people's minds, and for them to take steps forward if they feel what I am saying is appropriate to them. But not get upset if we disagree !

Today was an example, as I tried and failed to convince a guy that he needed to be open to what people were saying, to listen to them in the light they were trying to help him, not simply "tellling him what to do. He decided that I, too, was trying to tell him what to do, and I was totally unable to convince him otherwise.

I ended up feeling very upset, as I was trying to convince him that people mostly acted with the best intentions, yet ended up upsetting him ! Not what I intended at all !

Still, fortunately I had the most brilliant conversation immediately afterwards. Talk about lows and highs !

Has anyone else had any situations like that ?