Message Me

Photo by: Jens Larsson

Message Me
 
How often have you heard that in the last week? How many “messages” do you receive on a daily basis? Text, voicemail, Messenger, Instagram, etc., etc. The messages seem endless…Let’s spend a moment analyzing this endless messaging? It’s worth the time and energy.
 
I believe we are always MESSAGING. Say something…you send a message…Say nothing…you send a message. Then, there’s the age-old adage: Actions speak louder than words. So, actions message, too. If you own a business, your building messages. Your business card messages. Your company culture messages. Your website messages. Your coffee messages. Your billboard messages. I’ll say it again…
 
We are always messaging.
 
You know I’m big on COMMUNICATION – communicate EARLY, OFTEN and CLEARLY. If we’re always messaging, you can check the OFTEN box. What about early and clearly? I think with our messaging, we need to be intentional. Think through the message you want to send by your culture, your business card, your website (all of the things mentioned in the first paragraph and more). Thinking ahead helps with the EARLY of communication.
 
How about CLEARLY? At the risk of boring you, here it is once again. Be intentional. Another thought: I remember re-doing a business website. Our consultant in so many words told me to get out of the meeting…I knew what we as a company did, but the way I tried to craft the message likely meant nothing to the audience we were trying to reach. So, I obeyed and left the meeting. Good thing I did! A big part of achieving clarity is to
 
understand your audience.
 
And, that takes time and effort. Understanding your audience is worth the investment of the time and the effort.
 
So often, what we INTEND to communicate is different (even diametrically opposed) to the message we want the listener to receive. Test drive your messaging with friend and foe alike.
 
Mind your messaging!
It matters!
 
Bear with me as I address “internal messaging” – the messaging you do within your organization. Company meetings, memos and emails. How you decorate your office, what goes on around the water cooler, in the break room, etc. What messages do you want your team to receive and pass on to co-workers?
 
A messy message messes morale…
 
One last thought on messaging. What about, in Brene Brown language,
 
The story I’m telling myself??
 
We all have tapes playing in our heads. If you’re like me, far too often those tapes (read: NARRATIVES) are untrue.
 
Too often, false narratives
occupy head-space rent-free.
 
Here’s a thought: Evict those suckers. You don’t get to rent space in my head. Be gone!
 
We message ourselves all the time.
 
Record over the false-narrative tapes.
 
Replace them with THE GOOD STUFF. You’ll be glad you did!