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"Wording Does Matter" — (It's All About The Thinking)
By: Virginia McBride

Names matter. We use them to establish identity. Appearances matter. We use them to show the world who we are. Titles matter. We put them on important things. Pictures matter. We post them on refrigerators, we put them securely in scrapbooks, we use them in commercials. For all of these "matters," we take great care to polish, protect, position, promote. Still, one area of "matters" is repeatedly neglected and even abused — words. Words do matter.

For example, check how carefully you use members of the "co" family. The prefix "co" means together and may appear as co-, col-, con-, com- . We use the prefix as an add-on, such as co-workers. This add-on usage is, most frequently, very clear. However, if we move to the word "conversation" the meaning is clouded. By dictionary definition, "conversation" means informal talking between two or more people. Conversations generally happen by accident, not by planning or design. The connotative definition, the aura that surrounds the word, suggests that there is no particular purpose to be accomplished through conversation.

Today, that meaning is shifting to include informal conversations that are trying to be grown-up purposeful exchanges. Joseph Jaffee even wrote a book entitled "Join the Conversation: How to Engage Marketing Weary Consumers with the Power of Community, Dialogue, and Partnership." Without quarreling with the content of the book, I now feel reluctant to use the word "conversation" or feel required to question people who do use it as to what they intend or want. Does the word matter? I say, "Yes, but it is not worth the fight to make it matter to others."

"Conversation" is now pushing "communication" aside. The aura around communication is that of a circular message that is transmitted to another who, in turn, acknowledges the understanding of the message. The purpose of the transmission is the shared understanding. Now, the word is assuming the aura of a message that is distributed, widely in most cases. Sadly, there is no feedback loop to confirm that the message has been understood. Distribution-of-message now equals communication. Does the word "communication" matter? I say, "Yes, but most people do not seem to care enough to verify the understanding of their transmitted messages."

Other "co" words are blurring in their meaning. Cooperate, coordinate, collaborate — three very different words, now mean the same thing to many people. If we cooperate, we are collaborating. If we coordinate, we are collaborating. If we collaborate, we are cooperating and coordinating. The differences among the words are gigantic. [See "Collaboration: What Makes it Work" by Mattessich, Murray-close, and Monsey for a detailed explanation.]

They differ in the "vision" that is involved and the "relationships" that are expected and built — moving from loosely described pictures and interactivity of "cooperate" to very precisely defined commitments aimed at long term results of "collaboration." They differ in working "structure" — moving from informal to very specifically organized. They differ in their "responsibilities" — moving from minimal planning to very detailed planning for development and execution. They differ in the desired "communication" — moving from as-needed to detailed layers and paths on which clearly-stated information flows.

Further, they differ as to "authority" — moving from no shared authority of "cooperate" to precisely defined authority among the participating parties in "collaboration." They differ as to "leadership" — moving from a command-and-demand controlled leadership to a shared and shifting leadership. They differ as to "accountability" — moving from informal risk to equally shared risks among all parties. They differ in "resources" — moving from separately maintained resources to pooled resources managed jointly by the parties. Finally, they differ as to "rewards" — moving from minimal tangible rewards to a sharing of the rewards among all participants. Do the words matter? I say "Oh my, YES. Nothing worse exists than to be asked to join a "collaborative" only to find out that it is a command-and-demand "cooperative." Cooperate, coordinate, collaborate — three different words whose differences really matter! Be careful with them. We need to polish, protect, position and promote their PRECISE use.

Article Source: http://www.excitingdestiny.com/articles

Virginia L. McBride, The Haven Maven Founder, EPROW Images Creator, "IT'S ALL ABOUT THE THINKING" Virginia builds personalized "thinking environments" to strengthen innovative thought. Working with EPROW Images, clients analyze their word choice for connotative meanings. Mastering word choice simplifies their messages. To qualify for a free 30-minute consultation, submit a "pitch" through EPROW's PAPPY program => www.eprowimages.com

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