• 
• 

He thought she had said he was a fool. What she had actually meant to say was that she thought he was humorous or funny.

"That's not what I meant," she sobbed. But the point is that he thought she insulted him, and the relationship was in trouble.

Obviously, there was a misunderstanding here, a miscommunication, and it happens more frequently than most of us would like to admit. It is so important to say what we mean and mean what we say. Now she was going to have to work at repairing the relationship damaged by a single word.

Did you ever think about the power of words?

Words are very powerful tools but also deadly weapons. Words have built relationships and destroyed entire civilisations. Even when spoken or written with the best of intentions, sometimes words can be misunderstood, leading to frustration or worse.

How do we ensure others understand what we mean?

First, we have to understand what we mean and there is a very simple way to do that. Think before you speak (or send that e-mail). Thinking afterwards is too late. Once words escape, we cannot take them back. Once we have determined what we want to say, the challenge becomes how to say it.

Finding the proper words to express what we mean can often be difficult. Words are the basic building blocks of communication between two people. The meaning of a word can vary greatly, however, changed dramatically by a look, gesture, or tone.

Choose your words carefully to express exactly what you want to get across to the other person. Those are the gems.

Dr Bill Gould

Human resources director

Wall Street Institute, Thailand

www.wallstreet.in.th