Time for all of us to take a moment and Shut the Fuck Up.
People talk way too much. It’s a problem that’s become much worse with the ubiquity of mobile phones.
Right now I am on the train.
The guy sitting diagonally from me just gave his credit card number to someone over the phone within earshot of no less than 20 strangers. Seriously. The last four numbers were 0718 and his expiration is September of 2010.
The guy behind me has made three calls in less than 20 minutes. I now know his name, his mobile and home numbers, plus the address of the house he wants to buy in Batavia (which might have mold issues; the inspector is out in the field right now and will call him back later.)
Do you see what I mean?
So for today, we’re going to try a little experiment. It’s called 500 Words.
This is just one of the many ideas resulting from countless hours of fantasizing about what the world would be like if I was elected Queen of the Universe.
It could happen. If dogs could vote (and when I'm in charge they could), I know I'd have at least two votes. Seriously.
So back to 500 Words. Here’s how it works: You are limited to speaking just 500 words for the day.
Don’t worry about counting them. Just think about the word limit every time you’re about to say something and you won’t go over, trust me.
Think of all the benefits. The world would be a much nicer (and quieter!) place if people would just think a little before speaking.
About to say something nasty? Maybe you don’t want to waste your precious words on that person. Or maybe you’ve been meaning to tell someone exactly how you feel and you use up ALL your words on just one person. What a compliment that would be.
Plus, here’s another benefit, two examples:
Heather is Not Queen of the Universe: Under the 500 Word doctrine, the goal always would be to say things using as few words as possible, resulting in efficient and clear communication at all times.
Heather is Queen of the Universe: Keep it simple, stupid.
See? Efficiency and brevity rule.
So, give it a try if you feel like it. Let me know how it goes.
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Something Mildly Interesting:
Recently, two people whom I love dearly have called me Cupcake. And neither of them knows the other is doing it. Neato. Like Mom says, "Who doesn't love a cupcake?"
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Name the Movie:
How can you talk if you haven't got a brain?
I don't know...But some people without brains do an awful lot of talking...don't they?
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I am listening to: Verve – Bittersweet Symphony
I am reading: Business Intelligence Assessment documents
I am: kinda tired
3 weeks ago
3 comments:
Hey Hedy:
You know, I've been doing a lot of reading - with the business system that I'm working with. One of the many themes or ideas that helps make my life better is "that God gave us 2 ears and 1 mouth, we should use them in that proportion." In other words, we should listen twice as much as we speak.
Talk to you soon.
First, don't think I'm wasting time at work. I am on my couch keeping my crud germs isolated from the rest of the world.
To pass time I'm surfing which at this point has gotten me up to your third month of blogging. Some good stuff, even back in the early days.
The point of my comment: Do written words count against the 500 limit?
Wow! I need to revisit this concept for sure. Written words DO NOT count toward the 500. FEEL BETTER! And thanks so much for reading. :)
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