I am sitting in my front living room and I’ve got my AirPods in, I’m listening to a podcast, and my cat walks in. I say, “Zoe, where were you?” Well, my phone thinks I said, Siri, so Siri answers, “I’m right here.” I don’t care where Siri is, I’m talking to my cute, cuddly cat.
But the fact that my phone translated just one word incorrectly from Zoe to Siri, then provided me with a completely unsolicited response, and one that didn’t even make sense in the context of what I was talking about – this is the power of one word. I see this all the time, when I’m working with groups or individuals, we’re going through communication training, they often don’t really, truly see or kind of understand the impact that one word has.
My favorite example to give, and I don’t know for me if this started with my kids personally at home or within my corporate environment, but it became a mash of both. We often want to help other people, and so the common phrase that we say is, “Hey, let me know if you need any help.” I started changing just one word in that sentence. Instead of saying, “Let me know if you need any help,” I now say, “Let me know if you would like help,” and to take it an even further step. I prefer to say, “Let me know if you would like support.”
The change in just one, or possibly two, words completely changes the impact that it has on the individual receiving the communication, and it puts you in a better connection. It allows more forward movement versus being lost in translation.
Every single word has power. Every word matters, so choose your words wisely.
Before you go to send an email or any other written communication, just take a scan and look at the words that you’re using. Do they speak to the other individual in a positive way? Is it going to communicate your message in a way to keep things moving forward with a positive outcome?
Is there one word that you could potentially change in that next communication? And once you start to see that in your written communication, you’ll more easily be able to see that, and have it happen in more real time, through your verbal communication. Treat every single word like it matters – because it does.