The Communication Mailbag
by Steve Adubato, Ph.D. |
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Lots of feedback coming in on a variety of topics including job interviewing techniques, lessons learned from the Pike Place Fish Market story, and this letter about word choice and grammar...
Dear Steve,
I'm writing to highlight some common word choice errors. When I read these common mistakes, or hear them, I inwardly cringe. An otherwise-faultless appearance and demeanor can be ruined by poor grammar and word choice.
- Uninterested means not interested, whereas disinterested means not biased or influenced by personal motives. I'll bet the behavior highlighted by the Operations group's "disinterested" sign (from last week's column on the fish market) really is meant to discourage someone from appearing bored, distracted, or uninterested.
- I know everyone likes to say "doable" - especially in connection with goals, but we don't do goals, we achieve them. The word "achievable" is usually a much better choice.
- The most common meaning of affect is to produce a change or to alter the outcome, whereas effect is the result of the action. Although not universally true, a good rule of remember is that "affect" is usually a verb, and "effect" is usually a noun.
In my career, I've read many different works by many people…I've concluded that the biggest mistake writers can make is to distract from their message by improper word choice, poor organization or excess words. These mistakes can't be caught by Spell Check.
Virginia Rich
You are so right, Virginia. Word choice, grammar and syntax matter big time. The English language is extremely complicated and sometimes confusing. While you are accurate in everything you said, we shouldn't nit-pick with people who are struggling to communicate effectively, but who may make a mistake here and there. We don't want to make them gun shy about sharing their thoughts.
Dear Steve,
You are right on the mark with your "fish" column of two weeks ago. The type of attitude you bring to work each day is your choice, and only your choice. No matter how well or poor things are going in our lives, how we react and move forward, on a daily basis, is in our control! I find this especially helpful now given our company will be relocating and, without doubt, you have people that are happy and unhappy about the situation.
By the way, I've been to the Pike Place Fish Market several times. Once it was by chance and the others by design, just to revisit the enthusiastic attitude of a workforce working in the wet and cold - and loving it!
Rich Biddulph
Rich, several people have written saying that they've been to the Pike Place Fish Market in Seattle. Their reaction is universal. The reality of the work environment there certainly matches the buzz about it.
Dear Steve,
I have used similar tactics (to those used by the Pike Fish Market) in an effort galvanize folk in seemingly dull, drab environments for many years. I will capture the essence of your "fish" article of last week and add it to my repertoire of motivation tools.
Donald N. Frank
Speaking of tools…Check this last letter out…
Dear Steve,
During my 27 years as principal of Rutherford High School, I conducted many, many interviews. You shared some excellent tips for prospective candidates. Here are two more:
1. Don't wait until the interview is just about over before asking, "Would you like to see my portfolio?" Work it in during the interview, and if it doesn't fit in, then it probably wasn't worth bringing along in the first place.
2. Be prepared to answer questions such as, "How do you spend your leisure time?" and "What book are you presently reading?"
Bill Bauman
Great stuff, Bill. The key is to keep adding new techniques, or ways of becoming more effective, to your toolkit. The same thing is true for interviewing tools. Hopefully you've just helped some readers prepare for upcoming interviews.
Dr. Steve Adubato coaches and speaks on the subjects of communication and leadership and is the author of the book "Speak from the Heart." Write to him at The Star-Ledger, 1 Star-Ledger Plaza, Newark, NJ 07102, or click here to contact him through this web site. |
