Good Morning! Today’s pop quiz! What do George Wythe and the Bee Gees have in common? They both believed that words are all we have.
George as a matter of learning, preparing and performing and The Brothers, “to take your heart away”. Whether it is romance, learning, or business, the impact of how we handle “words” is essential to doing consistently well.
I also would like to thank my Torque’ band mate, Robin Reed for reminding me that while words and their treatment are essential to our effectiveness, the use of our eyes when dispensing the words is just as important.
Robin reminded me that today’s technical overload can serve as a distraction to looking a friend, colleague or customer in the eye while sharing words and spoil the entire interaction. That can also be said about how we read and write as well. There are far too many acronyms and emoticons for my taste. Perhaps we can recall Miguel Ruiz’s 4 Agreements where rule #1 encourages us to be “Impeccable with our words” which serves as a primary guideline for navigating a healthy and productive conversation.
We probably won’t realize the impact on our communications for several years, but these various shortcuts we and our offspring are taking will show up later in how we read, write and relate as time rolls on. Ask any 3d grade teacher what the kids are producing today for their personal narratives and reflective pieces. Enough P___ing and Moaning. It is what it is!!
Both George and the Gibbs brothers, as well as Miguel, make a strong case for properly listening, understanding and responding to the 228,132 words in some form of use in English language. While technology could accelerate, even facilitate our comprehension and use of these words, it seems hell bent on steering us in a different communicative direction.
For some reason, we keep trying to say less with less which causes us to assume, abbreviate, and ultimately complicate. When is last time you had a good conversation with another person? Written a real letter or note (emails don’t count). Or, got lost in a really good “read”, fiction or otherwise.
My fear is that we are flirting with losing the muscles and neuronal tissue that allows this to happen. And if all that happens, we will slowly watch it happen again on an even greater scale to the generations that are coming next, and next, and, even, next yet.
There is hope!! In Nokomis, Florida, where we head of most of the winter months, there is a simple, hands on community of 500+ where pot lucks, firepits and conversation is soundly championed. Games like Pickle ball, Mahjong, tennis, table tennis and dominoes are competitively enjoyed, rehashed and laughed about. There are even classes on getting to the bottom of the dark or light web.
Down here, we live life the “Old Fashioned’ way. We celebrate it Everyday!! And we even leave handwritten notes on each other’s doors. Let’s not let this idea get away from us and those we love.