Writing for life

They say that talk is cheap, but depending on the words you choose it can also be either priceless, or incredibly costly.

Communication in general is a very positive thing. Our ability to convey complex ideas and express our thoughts in a clear and concise way is part of what sets us apart from the creatures we share this planet with. The words we use have the potential to do incredible good – but they also have the power to do incalculable harm.

Words by themselves, of course – like the garden shears sitting in your shed – are just tools, neither intrinsically good nor bad. It’s the people who wield them that make the difference. Use those shears to trim your garden hedge and you have an effective tool that’s generating positive results for all concerned; try and decapitate your neighbour after an altercation over who’s hedge it is, and suddenly they become  a lethal weapon. It’s the same thing with the words you choose to use every day, at home, at work and at play.

How many of us really think about the consequences of what we have to say? Is it accurate, is it really adding value to our own lives or to those of others? Could our words be taken out of context and misconstrued?

In this technological age we use words more than ever, face-to-face, in telephone conversations, e-mails, text messages, instant messages, online forums and live chats. It’s easy to forget that every word we utter through all of these media can have a lasting, and not always foreseen impact on both ourselves and on the people around us.

Human beings are curious creatures by nature. We love knowing things that other people don’t know. We’re also notoriously bad at keeping secrets – and as a general rule can’t wait to pass the news we’ve gleaned on to others.  Of course, once we’ve told them we no longer know more than they do, so we start digging for some other priceless nugget of information. And so the cycle continues.

The problem with all of this is that most of the information we acquire through the grapevine tends to be rumour, hearsay and conjecture – incomplete at best and complete fabrication at worst. Yet we’re willing to peddle it as gospel to anyone who cares to listen.

Chit chatting with the neighbours over the size of the Murphy’s new extension is one thing – idle gossip about colleagues or events at work is quite another. At work perpetuating equivocations and half-truths can do untold, and quite often unintended, damage to your career and to those of others. It can demoralise teams, impact work efficiency, and ultimately undermine an organisation’s ability to compete, putting jobs at risk.  At work, more than anywhere, it makes sense to engage the grey matter before uttering, writing or typing anything.

Ask yourself if what you’re communicating is clear, concise and accurate? Do you need to say it at all? Could your message be diluted, or even misconstrued entirely by your intended audience?

When wielding words you’re literally handling one of the most powerful forces on the planet. Used positively they can perform miracles, but use them carelessly and they have the potential to do untold damage.

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