When does eagerness to contribute turn into verbal nonsense?
(This is a guest article by Karen Senteio)
I love a good Dilbert cartoon. Many times, they make me laugh out loud. Every once in a while there is one that not only makes coffee squirt out of my nose, but causes an internal dialog and some good-natured observations about myself or others.
A couple of days ago, I saw a comic strip where Dogbert asked a possible CEO replacement if he possessed the skill of blathering, as it was required for the position.
The CEO wannabe began to spew out nonsensical corporate speak.
Not only was it hysterical, I understood it! That was the funniest part. I was laughing at the article and at the same time realizing that somehow blathering had a place in organizations. In some instances, it is definitely considered a skill.
Is blathering a good thing?
Are you guilty of blathering for the sake of fitting into a conversation? Is blathering so ingrained into the day-to-day conversation of your organization that it is no longer blathering, but a new language? Are you not even sure if you are communicating or blathering? If your blathering is understood, isn’t that still communication?
One thing I know for sure, I am guilty of an occasional bought of blathering. I am not going to beat myself up about it. I am going to embrace it and have a little fun with it.
The question is how far you go. Where is the line between harmless chattering and spewing total nonsense? At what point do you have to say, “oh, please” and stop yourself from tipping over into the zone of, “What the heck are you talking about?”
There is a sure fire way to test for blathering. It is the ‘quick eye’.
Here is the scenario: You are at a meeting, you decide to comment, and you are in the mood for a little blathering. The blathering begins and you are going at it at a pretty good clip. There are confirming nods and that encourages you to blather more.
Then you notice ‘quick eye’.
‘Quick eye’ is when someone doesn’t understand what you are saying. Their confusion causes rapid eye movement as they quickly look around to see if anyone else is as confused as they are. That is the sure-fire sign that you have gone too far and should just stop. There is no graceful way to back out of blather, so smile, fold your hands and stop talking. It was fun while it lasted.
Thinking about this Dilbert cartoon offers an opportunity to chuckle at something we too often believe we can pass off as making valid points. We know we are blathering, but somehow we think no one else can tell. Don’t you believe it!
Sometimes, our need to add value to a conversation turns into something far less useful and, apparently, pretty funny. I leave you with this final thought. If you blather in the woods and there is no one around to hear it, is it still blathering?
Karen Senteio is a business and life coach and president of VERVE. She has over 20 years experience in developing and coaching individuals and groups to achieve personal success and work-life balance. You can visit her web site at Verve and contact her at Karen@vimandverve.net
Technorati Tags: buzzwords, management jargon, talking for the sake of it, communication, making sense


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