“… DM could you try to make your replies more legible? I gave up trying to read yours about four sentences in.”
excerpt from a blog comment thread this week
Ouch.
I went back and reread what I’d said, sure enough, it was “choppy”.
The first indication I might have “communication issues” was in 1985. I was 27 yrs old, enrolled in a counseling program through CCEF. The last phase of the program was the tutorial where we would get to do some supervised counseling. I was not accepted into the tutorial (along with 90% of my fellow students) because in my case, “ my verbal communication skills were lacking”.
Quick story.
I love to teach, still do. Several years ago, I voiced my frustration about these things to my friend Thomas. He looked at me with a twinkle in his eye and said:
“Doug, I don’t mind your choppy style. It forces me to pay attention. People who are eloquent put me to sleep. There is no danger of that when I’m listening to you.” ;-)
You know the story of Moses-right? God asks him to go and speak as his representative to Pharaoh – Ruler of one of the most powerful nations at that time.
And what is Mose’s response? “No”, says he is “slow of speech and tongue. “ Some people believe Moses had a stuttering problem.
I don’t know about you, but that strikes me as pretty funny. Of all the people in the world God could pick to speak in his behalf, he chooses a guy with “communication issues”. Now why, I ask you would He do that? Why would he take someone who can’t communicate clearly to speak for Him?
Just so you know, it takes a lot to offend me. I appreciated my fellow blogger telling me they couldn’t understand what I had been trying to say….so if ever you have a hard time understanding me, you’ll say something won’t you? ;-)
Thoughs, questions, comments?
May 10, 2008 at 10:52 am |
Other than your thick midwest accent
I have no trouble understanding your speaking – or writing – habits!
May 10, 2008 at 10:53 am |
My eye caught your own words in the sidebar: If you decide to leave a comment…please work real hard at communicating respectfully and graciously…
You were probably meaning for people to have a kind attitude toward each other, but I carry that over to how we place words one in front of another. Making the effort to communicate clearly is a way to be respectful and gracious. I find it is often just a matter of time and care–taking time to go back and reread what one has written, “listening” to it from the other person’s point of view. Doing that will often mean rewriting to spell out implied information, making sure the referents are obvious, etc. You know, what we all learned in English composition class!
May 12, 2008 at 6:17 am |
Hmmm. Remember ~ just as there are those who have “communication issues”, there are probably an equal number of people out there who have “comprehension issues”. Not to pigeonhole your commenter, but remember that we all like various authors of fiction because of their writing style. My husband enjoys Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky (or however you spell his name). They lose me after the first paragraph. I, however, enjoy lighter fare, like Dickens and Twain.
It’s all about preferences. Don’t take his words too far into your heart. I personally enjoy the way you write!
KH
May 13, 2008 at 2:51 pm |
I think sometimes we get so focused on the ‘topic’ at hand, that choppy is all we can muster … I mean really … if you think about it … after you read something, you have a million things going through your head … the last thing you are thinking about is creating complete sentences/thoughts/etc. Unless, you’re an editor of course!
Nonetheless, I wouldn’t take the ‘fellow blogger’s’ comment too much to heart … I think that just might be a compliment! Really! It just shows you’re attacking the subject at hand, and your thoughts are quickly turning, hence the need to write them, or type them, quickly, not to miss a thing … or, not to miss a thought that needs to be shared … Well, perhaps I’ve just complicated things … or was a bit ‘choppy’ … sometimes the thoughts just happen too fast! 
Nonetheless, you’re brilliant … and don’t let anyone tell you any different! God Bless! ~Emily
May 14, 2008 at 7:26 pm |
Jedi Master DM,
“From you my speaking skills inherited have I.”
:0)
May 17, 2008 at 2:23 pm |
I’ll weigh in as the English instructor. Don’t worry, no big lecture coming your way. There is such a then as “over editing.” That said, if you and other notice a choppy quality to your words, there’s some remedies that aren’t too painful.
1. Read your response outloud to yourself. If you catch yourself tripping over your words, as if they don’t flow smoothly, conversationally, think about how to make them work so they do.
2. Have a buddy read them for you. That takes time, I know.
3. Look at your sentence structure, is it stuck in a rut. Do you typically have 3 word sentences? Maybe you could vary it a bit to be less “choppy.”
4. Drink lots of coffee when writing. =)
Hope that helps!