Language is critical. Navigating change involves creating language. At the same time the language that we use gets in the way. The words we choose to communicate our message are essential to our ability to create meaning. But we don’t always do a good job in exercising choice. We obfuscate and we obstruct. We choose obscure and complicated words because we think they sound good. In doing so, we undermine meaning. And we do so at our peril.
Change Is About Creating Language
Words have power. When we create change—and when we build processes—words become particularly important. Not for how we sell the process (although that’s also significant), but for how we define and think about the process itself. Taking the time to get words right is some of the most meaningful work we do in managing change.
The Verbification Of Nouns: Grammar Crimes of the 21st Century
And so it has come to this. In the on-going quest to find complex and different ways to express otherwise straightforward and pedestrian thoughts, we are verbifying our nouns at an unprecedented pace. (And yes, the coining of the word ‘verbifying’ was for effect, and is an equally heinous crime for which I should no […]
Virtual Teams: A Futile Effort
Albert Einstein is attributed with defining insanity as, “Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose…
Changing Language: The Need to Keep Up
Words are powerful. They shape how we function, they influence what we think and they change how we perceive the world around us. The astonishing thing is that they have the power to do so without many of us even realizing it.
Reclaiming ‘Strategy’
Do we need to reclaim ‘strategy’? There was a very interesting article in yesterday’s Globe and Mail that essentially suggests that the words ‘strategy’ and ‘strategic’ are overused, hype-filled and meaningless buzzwords.