Express Lane

To answer your questions on who the smiling and international face of Vancouver  is in our  ‘place holder’ picture for the May Post on the Express Lane Blog, let me just say this:

She is one of the wonderful new friends I have met in the course of working with professional people seeking cross cultural understanding and better grasp of every day English in conversation and real life situations.

Here, pink cherry blossoms begin the spiral of  blooms spring brings to the Lower Mainland, and welcome her family as new official Citizens of Canada. Yet more quality people who have come with education, a family, great intentions and positive outlook. All are ready to contribute to their new home and in fact have already begun work at the entry level possible for them, despite being several notches down from their expertise and capability. In addition this snap was taken on a day of rest between the volunteer jobs they have undertaken.

Why are new immigrants volunteering? For meaningful contact and to contribute with their appreciation for supports they have experienced in their process of resettlement.

They are motivated to improve their communication skills. To learn more about their culture through direct experience of those already living in it. And, they have chosen to honour the citizens that made this country what it is – the seniors who worked, served, built and educated the society they now live in.

Adaptation to a new culture brings a lifetime of learning, reward and sacrifice. I am happy to have shared this one positive face with the world as a reminder of the human connection and the hard work and dedication to communication success that goes on, well past the time inked stamps dry and paper is filed.

It’s been happening now – the out loud talking for an afternoon, an evening, and an abnormally early start (again) in the morning.

Talking out my presentation in my Professional Image and Business Writing seminar, is normal when it is preparation. No. The murmuring and gesticulation as I go about the daily routine of my life – is after the fact – not a rehearsal or reinforcement.

It’s the verbal version of the drafts I encourage my clients to write. “First”, I say, “get the raw ideas and then formative sentences down on paper.”  Then I assure them of what I hold to be absolutely true, “The magic in writing, in communicating comes in the editing. It is refined in the revisions. That is where you find your true voice and the purest, most powerful message you transmit about yourself,  or the products or services you are selling.

I can’t control this voice. It keeps coming out as if I have an audience. I feel like an NHL goalie who blocked so many shots on her goal in the semi finals, she is still flailing reflexively at imaginary pucks coming at her. All this despite her now unlacing post game in the locker room.

If rehearsing is exercising your essential voice, this must be exorcising it.

I’m reviewing and evaluating the amount of content I shared in yesterday’s Business Communication Seminar. I am evaluating whether the anecdotes were relevant, the opinions valid, the examples useful and the ratio of my speaking to their writing appropriate.

The icky and uncomfortable parts are getting pushed out the same way they got into my presentation – through my voice. The bits that were less than professional, not well thought out have to be purged. It is uncomfortable, but then sometimes the editing process – challenges.

The editing, because it was an interactive, out loud session must go on till both my discomfort is purged and the many unspoken messages I absorbed from the class are diffused.

To think and be productive in this past summer’s stultifying heat was a challenge.

I sought occasional refuge from my non-air-conditioned studio sentences and cooled my synapses at a newly opened upscale grocery store. My rent – a hot tea or ice mocha latte with soya milk at its restaurant area.

It was hard to come in from that climate controlled refuge where I came with note paper, reading material and red editing pen. But, even the homeless folks roaming the back lanes of downtown Vancouver use the phrase: hard to come inside. Inside is where we must go if we want to progress in society, in work.

Inside is where our stuff is and where we recharge our animal bodies in safety. The results of my creativity are produced inside. I am not equipped, by choice, with cell or camera phone, iPod or any fruited personal communication devices or laptop. To work or to be accessed I had to come in and stay in.

The bears inspired me to get back in and ‘just do it’.

A trio of friends in this weekend’s perfect weather ascended 4,000 feet up Grouse Mountain.  This site’s webmaster challenged the Grouse Grind and climbed up in 1:09 – on the strength of his regular escapes from the cubicle to roller blade and cycle even in the heat of summer.

The designer and writer duo ambled over to the experimental bear pen – an easy hike from the 8 minute cable car ride.

The bears presented themselves, very unusually,  for almost an hour, unobstructed by the trees, rocks and bush of their terrain. In full range of all our senses – and the designer’s camera phone, they pawed the ground and gave voice to comments as the ranger gave his talk. Grinder and Coula each now eat 40-50lbs of food a day in preparation for hibernation. While no food ever came out of the shed behind the ranger’s platform directly to the bears, they had sleuthed it as the source of their surprise supplements found here and there,  on their turf .

Coula the coastal bear weighs in at over 700lbs now and is genetically pre-disposed to a larger size because of the protein in his dietary heritage.  A typical year’s catch was 2,000 lbs of salmon in the wild. Imagine.

Standing fully stretched they are 8 feet tall. Inactive now in front of us, snorting and whining, they just look fat. Squat and lumbering, waiting for food that never comes.

The bears reflected my own state at summer’s end.

Constant camera observation, year round proved that even in hibernation the bears got up daily to stretch, walk and ward off atrophy. They lived off their fat stores for weeks and months while their kidneys recycled their water. They emerged ready to do what they do best – forage.

This summer, I hibernated- somewhat. I actually built on fat stores and unlike the bears needed my health care team to assist me in getting back to what I do best – synthesize and present information for other people’s development.

A giant living metaphor came down from the mountain with me.

The timing is perfect.

I return now to my own den of  productivity.  A new year begins for me culturally, spiritually and practically.  I’ve been to the top of the mountain and the message is expend energy as needed for the right activities, keep moving and from time to time stretch to your full height and roar.

For all the hype you can find on line and all the courses that teach you about communication – sometimes it can be too much.

Too long in getting to the point.

Too much information.

Too aggressive.

Too random.

Too often.

It can be overwhelming, especially in addition to the thousands of random messages we do not actually sign up to receive.

One of Shakespeare’s characters utters the comment so critical to our own world today.

“Methinks the world is too much with me”, In our hyper, multi connected world – perhaps it is more correctly, “Methinks I am too much with the world.”

It’s risky to unplug, isn’t it?  You might miss something.  Your momentous post might be missed.

These past weeks spammers have been the too much I have experienced. They did all of the list that began this post, in a variety of languages. It robbed me of a lot of energy and enthusiasm to deal with them. It was more than annoying, it was sufficiently tiresome and time consuming to filter their comments and deal with them. Many were repeat offenders. I followed links a few times just out of fascination at the structure, length and origin of their messages.

It was enough to turn me off of adding to my own blog. They diverted energy from my passion and perhaps, potential profit.

I have a lead on some software that will save me time and distraction of dealing with uber spam. It will bring me back to effective communication in the world – I just really can’t get enough of!

The software solution will be shared with you.

Your GPS guide to good business communication and personal presence online will continue so that you don’t make that list of mistakes above. I’ll be here again soon with the best practice communication tips you need.

Just let me take out the trash and make room for the good stuff.