Seth's Blog : Broken English

 

Broken English

All the nuance disappears. When talking to someone in a languge that's not easy for them, you discover that idioms and other forms of communication disappear. You need to be extremely direct and specific in order to make yourself understood.

The thing is, just about everyone speaks some form of broken English. It's "broken" because it doesn't match our version. Their language and our language isn't the same one—the other person may think your English is broken too.

Our ability to communicate with one another isn't nearly as sophisticated or error free as we think it is.

You will be misunderstood. If it's critical that we understand you, say it more clearly. Say it twice. Better yet, act it out, live it, make it an action, not merely a concept.

       

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More Recent Articles

• The geek chorus
• Coming from "no"
• A choice is not an ultimatum
• No one reads a comic strip because it's drawn well
• My most popular blog posts this year

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Seth's Blog : The geek chorus

 

The geek chorus

Every sub-topic has its geeks. There are geeks who are into pencils, Bob Dylan, futures pricing. There are geeks who obsess about Wikipedia edits, journalism and even geek culture.

When you do something that matters, it will probably matter to the geeks most of all, and the geeks will speak up, dissect, analyze and perhaps extol or criticize. It's a symptom of doing good work.

The question is this: will you spend a lot of time listening to them?

The more you listen to this audience, the more likely it is you will delight them.

On the other hand, if you want to reach a much larger audience, you have no choice but to figure out when to ignore them.

       

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More Recent Articles

• Coming from "no"
• A choice is not an ultimatum
• No one reads a comic strip because it's drawn well
• My most popular blog posts this year
• Thank you

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Seth's Blog : Coming from "no"

 

Coming from "no"

The difficult task is to turn around a no.

Not, "no, I've thought about it, but I'm not interested," but, "no, I feel like saying 'no', whatever you're offering, the answer is no."

If the fractious child or the skeptical prospect or the frightened boss is coming from a place of no, your proposal just isn't going to work.

Shaking that rattle or waving that spreadsheet isn't going to work, because it's not going to be judged on the merits. The facts are irrelevant... if your partner (and yes, the person you're with right now is your partner, engaged in a dance that will end with yes or no) is in search of a no, nothing is going to go right.

The best path, then, is to first work on the 'no'. Not the pitch or the facts or the urgent thing you need approved right now. First, talk about the dance, and the goals, and how it feels to get to a yes.

Then tell me your story.

       

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More Recent Articles

• A choice is not an ultimatum
• No one reads a comic strip because it's drawn well
• My most popular blog posts this year
• Thank you
• When you're offered precisely what you were hoping for...

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Seth's Blog : A choice is not an ultimatum

 

A choice is not an ultimatum

Most of us, quite rightly, react poorly to an ultimatum. That's because an ultimatum is an emotional affront, a deliberate break in a relationship. Do this or else!

Often, our instinct is to respond to confrontation with confrontation. Ultimatums rarely work because we react to the emotion instead of responding intelligently.

On the other hand, giving your partner in a negotiation or a sale a choice between two outcomes is a generous act, a form of truthtelling that helps both of you. We all make choices, and choices have consequences. Helping people understand them in advance leads to better decisions.

       

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More Recent Articles

• No one reads a comic strip because it's drawn well
• My most popular blog posts this year
• Thank you
• When you're offered precisely what you were hoping for...
• "In an abundance of caution"

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Seth's Blog : No one reads a comic strip because it's drawn well

 

No one reads a comic strip because it's drawn well

It has to be drawn well enough, not perfectly.

No one goes to a rock concert because the band is in tune. They have to be close enough to not be distracting, but being in tune isn't the point.

No one buys a house because every floorboard is hammered in at the six sigma level of perfection. They have to be good enough, and better than good enough is just fine, but perfect isn't something that's going to overwhelm location, beauty, peace of mind and price.

As creators, our pursuit of perfection might be misguided, particularly if it comes at the expense of the things that matter.

       

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More Recent Articles

• My most popular blog posts this year
• Thank you
• When you're offered precisely what you were hoping for...
• "In an abundance of caution"
• "Am I supposed to like this?"

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