Blah-blahmeter, Don't Leave Home Without It

In today’s technology-rich world, words come at rapid fire from e-mails, text messages, pop-ups, blogs (like this), mobile phones, and so on. Always on, always connected is the norm for today. We attend meetings, hear speeches, attend classes, read newspapers, and watch television. We are taking in messages continuously which creates the perfect storm for brain overload. If a message requires too much effort to comprehend, it may be tuned out.

Too many words, wrong words, confusing words, deceptive words, or strange words will trigger the blah-blahmeter meaning the odds are high that the message will sound more like “blah-blah-blah” (2011). According to author Dan Roam in his enlightening and entertaining book Blah-blah-blah What to Do When Words Don’t Work, we need to be deliberate in the words we use as well as to draw the message. He states that “pictures are the part of thinking that provides us guidance and direction. It’s the ‘big picture’ that lets us see where we are going. Pictures aren’t training wheels, they are the front wheel” (Roam, 2011, p.22). If you have difficulty understanding or drawing the message, it may be rift with blah-blah-blah.

Note how the two statements below demonstrate the concept of blah-blah-blah from Roam’s book:

1. “Typically, a position will consist of the ownership of 30-35 S&P 100 stocks, most correlated to that index, the sale of out-of-the-money calls on the index and the purchase of out-of-the-money puts on the index…..”

Looking at statement number one above we think “what was that all about? Does the speaker even know what he was trying to say?” This actual statement was Bernard Madoff explaining his investment strategy. He was covering a bad idea with blah-blah-blah by distracting listeners.

2. “This is the captain. Brace for impact.”

Statement number two was made by Captain Chesley Sullenberger who safely landed passengers aboard US Airways flight 1549 on January 15, 2009. He was direct and to the point, no blah-blah-blah there.

If a message is unclear, the blah-blahmeter helps tune in and read between the lines. If we are the speaker, the blah-blahmeter is effective to reduce the blah-blah-blah in order to communicate effectively.

Effective communication includes much more than the vivid visual tools as charts, maps, and graphs that we currently employ. Mr. Roam’s book provides numerous ways of using vivid visuals or drawing the message to eliminate the blah-blah-blah. A variety of real-world corporations and individuals throughout history are included to illustrate his points. It is a fun, thought-provoking read.

With the blah-blahmeter, we can eliminate the blah-blah-blah and clearly see the forest (big picture) and the trees (words). Carry a blah-blahmeter with you, use the tools of this innovative book and watch how effective you are at changing the world through your clear communication.

Reference:

Roam, Dan. (2011). Blah blah blah, what to do when words don't work. New York, New York: Penguin Group.