What You Don't Say Speaks Volumes

Processing your message.

As you may recall from either your psychology or sales classes (the concept is equally important to both), the majority of communication going on during a two-way conversation happens on a non-verbal level. That means that regardless of the words we say, our interlocutors receive the most of our message based on our facial expressions, body language, and other contextual clues. Knowing this arms us well for our one-on-one encounters; we can plan ahead and think about our postures and the nuances of our smiles, to ensure that we’re supporting our message with every non-verbal cue we give.

But it puts us in a bit of disadvantage when it comes to written communication. An email, letter, or dashed-off note is decidedly one-dimensional, without the clarifying add-ons that come with a nod, a grin, or an arched eyebrow. You might think your written missives are in constant danger of misinterpretation — unless you’re one of the millions who’ve suffered some office drama because your well-intended sarcasm didn’t translate into email format. Then you know that’s true.

The most well-reasoned defense against this is a careful, clear-eyed reading of all your output, checking for passages that can be misconstrued. It’s certainly not a bad idea, and you might consider getting into the habit.

But who wants to be stuck on defense? The best offense is a method of writing that employs the tools your word processor gave you to round out the subtleties of your writing.

For instance…the use of ellipses (…) provides a mental pause, and clues the reader that something momentous is to follow. Need to add some extra emphasis? Try italics. Even more emphasis, something like the written version of an attention-getting hand clap, is boldface.

And pay attention to your use of paragraph spacing. Setting important words and phrases all by themselves—

—like this—

—gives them weight, dimensionality, and particular focus. There are *other* tricks as WELL, probably limited only by the functions and macros available on your keyboard.

It’s a simple, handy way to help get your written message across. Just...try not to overdo it.

It gets ANNOYING, fast.

The C4:

1. In a one-on-one conversation, the majority of the conversing is happening non-verbally. Messages are emphasized, amplified, and clarified based on facial expressions, body language, and other non-spoken cues.
2. This leads to a problem with written communication. Our audience has no message to interpret other than the words we’ve composed. If there’s ambiguity inherent in them, we can sure they’ll be misconstrued.
3. So read everything you’ve written before you send it out, and try to spot and refine anything that’s not crystal clear. And use every macro, function, and special character your word processor provides, if they can help you to impart the message you mean to impart.
4. Oh, but use those sparingly, if you can. A page full of italics, bolds, and underlines can quickly clutter a page and become a visual turn-off (supplying, that way, yet another message you didn’t intend to send).

Jump On The Blog Wagon

There's a logical explanation for your organized thinking.

What if we told you there’s a single tool that can support all your marketing efforts, enhance your management and internal relations, improve your communication skills, and sharpen your critical thinking?

Already it sounds too good to be true. So just wait until we add: This tool is absolutely free.

The tool we’re speaking of is the blog, and if you don’t have one already you should start one right away.

What can you do with a blog? To begin with, you can explain yourself. You can provide the detail behind your decisions — to your customers, to your employees, to strangers…maybe, if need be, even to yourself.

That’s because the act of writing, of blogging, forces a focus in your thinking and an examination of your procedural logic. In sitting down to write the 500 or 1,000 words on whatever’s relevant to your business this week, you’ll find yourself delving into why it’s relevant, and what that means, and what it foretells.

You’ll support and amplify your marketing campaigns by providing a longer-format appeal that just isn’t possible through any other outreach. You’ll humanize yourself and the voice of your company, by supplying the ongoing narrative that explains why you’re in business and what makes you tick.

You can spend money on blogging, to be sure. Spend as much as you want. But you can get started, and you should get started, right now, for nothing. And similarly, you’ll probably get started with few or no readers. That shouldn’t stop you either. Every blog you write, whether it’s read widely or not at all, sharpens your mind and hones your ability. Every entry makes you a better writer and a better thinker. And rest assured, the better you get the more attractive your blog gets. The readers will come.

This is a tool that’s loaded with potential. Your potential to start a conversation, to introduce yourself to an unlimited audience, and to begin explaining why you’re doing what you do starts with the gentlest of efforts.

We urge you to make that effort at once.

The C4:

1. The blog is the definitive format of twenty-first-century electronic publishing. It is open and available to all and is equally serviceable for business, for art, for pleasure, and for no particular reason at all.
2. From a business perspective, there’s probably no comparable tool that can reach so many people, that can explain or justify so ably and thoroughly, and can elicit such critical thinking, for so little outlay and effort.
3. Your earliest efforts at blogging might attract little notice. Your first few blogs might be choppy or rambling. Soldier on. You’ll get better with practice, and your practice will attract attention.
4. Blogger and Wordpress are free hosting services that can have you up and running with a beautiful, dynamic blog in just a few minutes. With Tumblr, you can create a more visual-oriented and stripped-down yet still great looking blog even faster. With Wordpress you can download the open-source Wordpress software and host it yourself. You can buy a domain name for a few bucks and redirect it to any blog, anywhere. The point is you can spend a little, a lot, or nothing — and still create a blog that lets you speak with your customers like never before. Why not get started today?

The Process of Think

Do you meticulously storyboard your ideas or subconsciously scribble them out? Do you stockpile certain words that you like and blacklist those you don’t? Do you write out every detail or make the story up as you go along? If you repeatedly click your pen as you write, pace a room before you type, tap your toes while you think or throw away numerous quantities of crumpled paper — that just may be your “process of think.”

Some feverishly type in hopes of capturing a stroke of genius, while others are subtle writers who hang onto every idea until the timing is just right. Every writer has his or her way of expression that may eventually lead to an exciting new concept — but great ideas don’t come from staring at the sea of white. They come by making a choice to set out toward a goal, even with a storm looming on the horizon. That’s why we call it the process of think. It goes beyond the compound noun “thought process” because “think” is what you do, and taking action is what matters.

It’s important to remember that all storms have a purpose, whether it be to release electrical charges raging in the heavens or to let loose a refreshing rain upon the land. The storm in your mind has a purpose as well, and each bolt and rumble means you’re getting closer to the result. However, it’s completely up to you to determine how to navigate that storm to best capture or express your idea. Through frustration and the occasional setback, what matters most is that you simply get the idea out. Once it’s on the page or on the screen, think hard about your next move. Will you call it a victory and trim the sails? Or will you follow your idea to where it’s leading you?

The C4:

1. The storm raging inside is a part of the creative process.
2. You may be holding yourself back.
3. Taking action is what matters — get the idea out.
4. Once the idea is free, think hard about your next move.