Talk Is Not Cheap!

Talk Is Not Cheap!
By Tommy Franks

Have you ever heard, "Talk is cheap”?
I have heard this all my life…and you have perhaps heard this too!
Do you think it’s true? I do NOT. I think talk is expensive! Sometimes, it can be very expensive!

Misunderstandings happen all the time because of talk…sometimes "cheap talk" and sometimes "cheap shots". The consequences of misunderstanding are NOT cheap. Misunderstandings range from hurt feelings to ruined relationships to long-lasting, costly economic penalties. Talk is not cheap!

Our communication is not perfect. We know that. Even under the best of circumstances, we frequently fail to get our point across. At times, we fall short of really understanding what the other person is trying to tell us. When this happens…and it does occasionally, we will pay the price. As a husband, I can tell you in no uncertain terms…that sometimes, misunderstanding your wife will cost you!

Think about your most recent misunderstanding with "whoever". What did it cost you to correct it? We make excuses and say, "Well, misunderstandings will happen. That is just part of life." Is it? Does this have to be true? Think about it. Are misunderstandings inevitable? Can we communicate in such a way that misunderstandings are rare? I'm NOT sure that we can eliminate them entirely; however, I believe that we can certainly reduce them.

Understanding others will save us enormous energy, time, and resources… no doubt about it! The tax payer would save money. Supervisors would save time and effort. All of us would save relationships from time to time. An individual's self-esteem would sky rocket. People would feel better about themselves.

Talk is not cheap!

Think of the relationship we have with another person as a checking account. On a regular basis we make deposits into our accounts because we know that we will be writing checks or making withdrawals at a later time. It is in our best interest to keep a positive balance in our accounts. The consequence of failing to do this is to pay a fee and lose credibility.

Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe said, "Treat people as if they were what they ought to be and you help them to become what they are capable of being."
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In our relationships with other people (work or home), if we experience misunderstandings or in some way disappoint them, we can believe that we are making a withdrawal from our account with that person!

Misunderstandings are like automatic bank withdrawals or bank drafts. We may not immediately realize that the funds have been removed, but they have indeed. To avoid these unintentional overdrafts and ensure that our account balance stays positive, we need to make regular deposits. Hello!

In order to maintain a positive balance in our people account, we need to consider the following four deposit items:

1. We need to project a positive attitude. What we say to ourselves is the foundation for what we say to others. When we make negative statements to ourselves or accept harmful messages from someone else, it plays on our own self-esteem. We normally cannot control what another person says and does, but we can control what we do with that information. We can take charge of our own attitude. A good positive attitude makes us unstoppable. Our altitude is determined by our attitude. Think highly of yourself. You’re worth it!
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2. We need to listen more than we talk. One of the greatest gifts we can give to others is the gift of time…listening. This gift is one of the greatest deposits that we will ever make into the lives of people. Look at the word "listen". Rearrange the letters and we get the word "silent." In order to truly listen, we must be silent. Hello! This deposit can almost eliminate misunderstanding. Invest in other people. Listen to them! God gave us two ears and one mouth. Do you think there might have been a divine plan in this?

3. We need to find a better way to say something at times. This type of deposit requires some planning. However, oftentimes, we just blurt out our thoughts without even thinking. I plead guilty to this accusation. Oh yes, many times over! My fast mouth has betrayed me a time or two. Sometimes it has created a misunderstanding which then became a liability to my people account balance. Furthermore, when I realized my mistake and attempted to fix it…I only compounded the problem. This is when I truly know that if I would have audited my words before I opened my mouth, the relationship could have been saved. Do you get my drift?

4. We need to treat others the way that we would like to be treated. We need to consider others. We need to appreciate others. We need to "thank" others for who they are. By doing this, we are making deposits into our people account.

These four people deposits will be credited to our accounts and will almost eliminate the high cost of misunderstandings at work and at home. Our equity will be priceless! Think about it!