C is for Communication

Communicating with others is hard. Communicating intentionally what you want to say is even harder. I have always known this, but have come to live it in these last few months. My job shifted considerably about a year ago - I went from managing a bulletin and making sure a magazine went out quarterly to being in the middle of how we communicate our message to the world - and how we can do it better. It has been an interesting shift, and a hard one. What I have come to realize, though, is that I am passionate about communication, and about helping people communicate well.

It's funny - if I could go back and talk to myself at 18, there is a lot I would say (don't worry about guys, for example, because you end up with the perfect one for you; turns out your mom is way smarter than you giver her credit for, etc), but I would definitely encourage that passing thought about going into marketing as a career choice. Or at least taking a couple classes. But, since I can't, I will relish the fact that I am learning so much now.

Communication is so important - because people are important. Stories are important. Tales are important. The journey is important. And, that's so easy to forget. My goal in life is communicate well. To speak clearly. To choose images and words that tell the message I want them to tell. To be a vessel for a bigger story. And then, to help others do the same thing. I've learned that communicating a lot isn't the same as communicating well; choosing the right thing to say is just as important as saying something, after all.