The trouble for me usually starts on those rare occasions when I actually make myself perfectly understood.

Ha! Yes, I have days like that too. ;)

what are you talking about?

Willis. Whatchoo talkin bout?

who loves ya, baby?

We understand you better than you understand yourself. But we love you anyway.

I rarely find myself misunderstood either in meatspace or on the internet. That's prolly cuz I ain't got a lot to say in either place.

I think, after talking this over with a friend of mine, that I'm often misunderstood because I'm short (and not just physically ba-dum-tish!), like he is when we speak about work-related matters. Example; he's a producer and does a lot of film work, so he'll say stuff like "He needs to change his shirt, same as background." and he expects everyone on set to be professional enough to understand the myriads of problems he's just avoided by that statement which points out that the subject is wearing the key color. Instead, lost of people think he's just being a bit of a dick barking out shirt-changing commands for the heck of it. I often find myself recently pointing out potential problems with questions, like "What are your reasons for changing the CMS to WP?" hoping to find an illuminating answer from the person, that settles my fears they have thought about perma-linking issues and a gazillion others that just popped into my head without me having to mention it. They react by getting agitated that I question their every move (even after projects have been re-arranged because my questions pointed out wormcans full of issues they forgot to think about). It seems things that I say might be less misunderstood if I spent twenty minutes explaining everything I say with lots of "because this" and "have you thought of this", so that people don't assume that I'm "changing shirt colors for the heck of it". But if I had to be this wordy every time I say something, I'd have permanent cotton-mouth. Also, I thought allowing people to explain their motives would be far more polite, allowing them to elaborate on their choices and present solutions to potential issues, so I'm actually phrasing it as questions to be nice.

Also, I have the curse of when I'm joking people take me seriously and when I'm serious people think I'm joking.

Sometimes I'm not quite sure why I'm misunderstood. When I'm tired it happens a lot. I use less words to get to the point faster, and apparently all of them sound very angry to everyone within earshot, or reading what I type. I can not hear anything even remotely near angry in my tone, and I have no idea how this phenomena creeps into simple text sent over teh intartubes but it does.
Example: Coffee DB? -"Yes" -"YOU DON'T HAVE TO BITE MY HEAD OFF! - Huh? I said yes? Yes please? Yes, thank you? Yes I would like some coffee in my mug that is right next to yours now that you are pouring yourself one already, cheers for that mate. / me confused and now a little angry because whoah, I just said yes don't bite my head off.

It happens face-to-face. That's why I don't talk much anymore.

Also, I have the curse of when I'm joking people take me seriously and when I'm serious people think I'm joking.

This is also known as being Australian.

Ha! Maybe I should finally visit that place then.

Oh, my...

My mother never told me I was Australian. I'm going to need a minute to absorb this new information.

We're both Sheilas now, Elsa.

I'm misunderstood more in real life. That's because I express myself more easily in writing than in speech, and I'm one of those people who seems to be sending messages with my facial expressions that I don't even mean ("you look bored/angry/aloof" when I think my expression is blank or just calm).

Definitely misunderstood more IRL. I rarely have to explain myself in writing. In real life I find myself saying "No, I didn't mean it that way!" a lot. I think I come off as distant and cold or something. I'm very pragmatic and reserved, not prone to raised voices or dramatics, and that is sometimes interpreted as unempathetic. Like Miko, my expressions/tone evidently doesn't match my words at times. So I will have the person repeat back exactly what I said. If I said "yes, that's fine with me," then that is literally what I meant, even if I sighed or looked away or whatever.

I was cursed with my maternal family's browline, which makes me look permanently serious / intense / angry / Machiavellian.

Smiling and/or laughing only serves to make me look deranged. Example.

and of course now that I'm getting old, it merely reinforces my grumpy-old-hag persona that I've been grooming since preschool, thanks.

How many of you are more misunderstood in real life than the internet because in the latter case, you're talking to us while in the former, you're talking to them?

Also, real life lacks a "preview" button.

(Don't misunderstand what I mean here)

I'm just a soul whose intentions are good
Oh Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood.

Can someone explain this thread to me?

I can do a modern dance interpretation. And a one, and-a two and-a... *ow*, I need to stretch.