No, this isn’t about your native language, your clear pronunciation, the volume of your voice or how fast you speak. Yes, of course, those things are important too. What I’m getting at is whether people can still follow what you’re saying. Do they understand what you’re saying?
I’m currently reading four books at the same time again. All four are absolutely gripping. In the morning, I can hardly decide which one to pick up next. Most of the time, I end up reading a bit of each anyway. I love good books. Especially when they make me think and/or really speak to me.
One of them does both. It gets me thinking and really speaks to me right now. On the subject – which is about the future and self-efficacy – I wish more people would give it some thought. But why don’t they?
Well, I should mention that language and communication are my greatest strengths. With 21 years’ experience in the media and nearly 20 years’ experience in coaching, mental training and face reading, I hear and interpret things quite differently now.
With one of the four books, it became clear to me quite quickly that an AI had been used for the editing. The sentences were brilliantly crafted – no question about it. However, some sentences were completely nonsensical and dragged out to the point of being almost incomprehensible: endless nested clauses and technical jargon, naturally always with references to other authors, experts and – most importantly – statistics packed with figures, data and facts.
Yeah, I get it – a book has to be filled out to reach the mandatory minimum of 220 pages. I’ve just written a book myself – though without AI. For anyone who hasn’t heard of it yet: Just me! …not normal! And believe me, I’ve had plenty of comments: though they were mostly along the lines of “you write honestly, authentically and originally, and it’s a pleasure to read on”. Und glaubt mir, ich habe genügend Kommentare bekommen: allerdings waren das eher Aussagen wie „du schreibst ehrlich, authentisch und originell und es macht Spass weiterzulesen“.
Getting back to the question of why people don’t think more about fascinating topics, such as the future in my example: it’s because they don’t understand it. As mentioned, the book is crammed full of technical terms, convoluted sentences, cross-references, and facts and figures from some statistics that nobody can verify anyway. It’s exhausting! You end up spending more time trying to understand the book than actually thinking about its content. Zukunft, nachdenken: weil sie’s nicht verstehen. Das Buch ist, wie erwähnt, vollgepackt mit Fachbegriffen, Schachtelsätzen, Querverweisen, Daten und Fakten aus irgendwelchen Statistiken, die eh niemand überprüfen kann. Das ist anstrengend! Da bist du mehr damit beschäftigt das Buch zu verstehen, als über den Inhalt nachzudenken.
I’m currently providing coaching on communication to a large company. There, too, I’ve noticed that in many cases, simple and clear communication would be helpful. Of course, many people need to use technical jargon to demonstrate their superiority to others and make themselves seem important. Is it helpful? Not usually.
There’s a wonderful expression: speaking your mind! It refers to an open, direct and forthright way of expressing one’s opinion. You speak freely, naturally and authentically, without spending ages searching for the ‘right’ or formal words. That’s what we call conversation. No wonder that even meetings are perceived and experienced by everyone as ‘exhausting’. It’s not sustainable.
Long live simplicity in language! Especially if you want to make a difference.
One of the key topics in my talks, seminars and coaching sessions is this: whether it’s a sales pitch, a staff appraisal, an interrogation or your overall demeanour. Analysing language, so to speak 😉
Don’t worry, there’ll be more on this topic in my next book in the “INS SCHWARZE!” series.
You can already get a taste of it in my first book, *Just me! …not normal!* Hier bestellen! (oder auch auf Amazon und in jeder Buchhandlung).
#sn-coaching #facereading #profiling #mentaltraining