Over Communicating

Is it possible to over-communicate? Can one communicate too much? Those questions are inspired by a comment I heard the other day when one person accused another of "talking too much." That particular comment, which we have all certainly heard before, refers to when a person is felt to be disclosing too much information. Rather than simply answering a question with a brief, direct response, they include information deemed extraneous or not germane to what was actually asked or raised. At times, talking "too much" can result in negative consequences such as hurt feelings or breaking a previous confidence.  

But is "over communicating" the same as "talking too much?" I think not. Communicating is the act of establishing a mutual understanding with another and/or sharing information, feelings, perspectives, etc. with another. In this sense, is it possible for a person to "over-share" information as to how they feel about a particular experience, for example? Or what if two people are talking about the history of U.S. space exploration and one of them introduces an over-abundance of information on the topic? While such an act might be overwhelming, is it the same as when one goes even slightly off-topic? No.

While over-communicating might tend to be a tad off-putting, such an act is not negative in the sense it detracts from a mutual exchange. It actually adds to an interaction despite the fact one or more of the participating parties might tend to find the additional information more than they can or are willing to handle. On the other hand, "talking too much" tends to shift the interaction and remove it from its original purpose. While many of us may prefer our encounters with others to be short and to the point, if one begins to over communicating, then take comfort in knowing they actually adding to the exchange. On the other hand, be on guard if they start to "talk too much."