After a few discussions prompted by some thoughts I shared last week “Flying Through Life’s Ups and Downs”, another “take from on high” became really relevant.
Take a flight during a busy travel season, and you’ll probably hear some variation of the same announcement.
“Please be mindful of how you stow your luggage. We have a full flight today.”
Sometimes it’s:
“We have a very full flight.”
Or:
“We have a completely full flight.”
Or:
“We have an extremely full flight.”
Occasionally you’ll even hear:
“We have a totally full flight.”
They’re all well intended.
But they’re also imprecise.
A flight isn’t very full.
It isn’t extremely full.
It isn’t totally full.
It’s either full or it isn’t.
The interesting part isn’t the announcement.
It’s what it reveals about the way we communicate.
We often describe situations with vague modifiers that sound meaningful but add very little clarity.
“My schedule is incredibly busy.”
“I’m almost completely ready.”
“I’m pretty much finished.”
“I’m sort of committed.”
“I’m extremely overwhelmed.”
Sometimes those descriptions are accurate.
Often, they’re simply emotional approximations.
When our language becomes imprecise, our thinking often follows.
The better question is:
What do you actually mean?
How many hours are committed?
What remains unfinished?
What specifically is overwhelming?
What exactly are you waiting for?
Precision forces clarity.
Clarity leads to better decisions.
The next time you hear, “We have a very full flight today,” smile for a moment.
Then ask yourself where else in your own life you’re using words that sound descriptive but really aren’t.
Sometimes improving your perspective begins by improving your vocabulary.
The clearer your language becomes, the clearer your thinking becomes.
BEST in Small Doses:
As a manager and executive, I realized that there was a Wide Variance between people when they used the now infamous bailout phrase:
“We’re swamped.”
“Ok, can you kindly provide an estimate as to when we might expect you to become unswamped?”
