Monday, August 23, 2010

Words and their meanings (#570)

Even this morning I caught myself unable to sufficiently describe a point I was trying to make. My choice of words left too many opportunities for different interpretations. It is not that I try to leave ambiguous comments out there. It is just that at times in my haste, I don't pause long enough to consider what may else be construed from my choice of words. It is bad enough that most of us do not communicate by using proper sentences, it is also worse when we speak to each other orally. The fad of the day when I was growing up was to use slang and "hip" words to describe our feelings or our knowledge of particular topics. This has come back to plague me in some ways since I still find myself reverting back to some slang expressions. I am not saying that this is the only way I am deficient in communicating, but one of many. Most notorious is the the non-specific generalizations I use when I should be perfectly clear. I am guilty of trying to be poetic or clever instead being zeroed in on my point. I am also guilty of using cliche's and metaphors instead of speaking directly to what subject I am discussing. It is like it is easier for me when I can talk around a subject instead of being subjected to an uncomfortableness of speaking directly to an unsettling problem. I am still a work in progress and need to, myself, explain my thoughts with my own directly honest words.

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