Do Your Words Reflect Your Intention?
Words are everything – you remember the most beautiful sentence you ever heard, and the most hurtful. Words can lift, inspire, and invoke change. They can also isolate, tear-down, and humiliate. How we use words is our choice – but before we choose, it is imperative to be aware of the impact those words will have and accept that responsibility.
Know Your Intention.
If you are unclear in your intention, you will be remiss choosing your words. The words you choose to communicate your message may be mismatched to your purpose. When you speak out to defend or highlight your point, understanding what your point is, is the first step in understanding how to communicate your message.
Use Words like a Poet.
When a poet writes, every single word is deliberately chosen to convey the message of the work. There are no filler words and no fluff to fill the stanza. If the words do not move the message forward, they don’t make it onto the page. We need to communicate with this attention to detail right now. We need to understand the words we are using and ensure they are part of the narrative we want to convey. We are used to using specific vocabulary, but now, as we listen and learn new perspectives, and come to new understandings about the world around us, it may be the time to examine the breadth of our vocabulary.
How’s your Vocabulary?
FACT: There are 600 000 words in the Second Edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, of which 50,000 are thought to be obsolete.
FACT: The average native English speaker has a vocabulary of 20 -30K words.
CONCLUSION: There is room to expand your vocabulary by approximately 500 000 words!
Before we use words – pause. PAUSE. Take a moment to think of their impact. Take a moment to think of your intention, and if those words reflect the message you want to deliver. To affect the change you want to make, you first need to be clear on what you want to say and which words will best help you say it.
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Stay curious and take care.
