It's all about the words

Clarity happens. One of my must-read blogs, Shades of Gray by David Murray, said this at the end of a recent post: "Let’s do the work that needs to be done rather than the work that happens to be on our to-do list."

I responded: "Doing the work that needs to be done rather than what's on our to-do list  --that's the kicker, ain't it? That's following our bliss. That's knowing what in the world we're each meant to be an ANSWER to."

This all got me thinking. Terrierista's About Me page said: "I help clients grow their business or increase their influence by building healthy relationships . . . using transparent communication: candid, respectful conversations with no jargon or hype."

I need to be more explicit about the importance of words. I can do marketing, PR, advertising, strategic planning, and measurement, but I'm a writer to my marrow. Have been since I was ten. Words are "my North, my South, my East and West, my working week and my Sunday rest, my noon, my midnight, my talk, my song" (love you, Mr. Auden). My wildest successes have been about words. They're what I do best and where I'm happiest.

Words are where clients get the most value from me. Thanks for making me think about this, David.

Here--to be clear--is what I'm selling:

• I help clients figure out what needs to be said.
• Words need to reflect reality or they're, well, bullshit. I help clients decide whether they're prepared--with help from me or others--to match the reality to the words--"walk the talk." (Some clients already have a stellar "walk" and just need some help with the "talk" to tell their great story.)
• I help clients say what needs to be said, as effectively as possible and in a way that invites relationships, whether the product is an employee newsletter, a speech to stockholders, or a bad-news announcement to the media.

That's my bliss. Let's do lunch.

(Photo: Eye of God in the Helix Nebula. Credit: NASA, ESA, C.R. O'Dell [Vanderbilt University], M. Meixner and P. McCullough [STScI], T.A. Rector [NRAO])

Comments

[David Murray]

Jane Greer, I love your attitude about this writing business. So many of us, in our zeal to appear as mystical strategists, have abandoned words as if they were dirty, gritty, "tactical" things that keep us back.

When, in fact, they are what made us whatever we have become.

On we grope together in words,

David

[Kent Blumberg]

Jane,

What a huge improvement! To be frank, the old about page sounded awfully corporatese. But this new one rocks!!!

(And now mine seems even worse than it used to.)

Kent

[Jane Greer]

Thanks, David, you old word dog. I'm proud to be in the front lines with you.

Kent: a compliment from you is a big deal to me--but you should see my About page now! I remembered that I knew just a smidgin of HTML so I put some lipstick and high heels on it!