I remember a friend of mine telling me once that she thought people who went to post secondary school had a larger and more sophisticated vocabulary.
I didn’t go to post secondary, so this was interesting to me. I asked her to explain. She said they read more and are therefore exposed to better words and they speak differently.
This conversation was almost 20 years ago and I still remember it.
She was the first one to bring my attention to it, and now almost everyday I am surprised about how our language affects our lives.
The language we choose says something about who we are. It will tell us more about you that what type of shoes you wear. When I realized this I was much more careful about the words I chose. They are a direct reflection of me, if I wanted to be classy, I needed to choose classy words.
There have been so many times I’ve felt something deeply and strongly inside of me, but didn’t have the words to explain it. Being vulnerable is one thing, but trying to find the correct words to get to the heart of how I’m feeling is a whole other thing.
The #metoo movement makes a huge statement and says so much with just two words attached together. When we find powerful words, we can give them a meaning that tells a story of a thousand words.
Every word we speak carries an energy with it. Other people’s words will get inside of you and talk to you long after they are gone. The same is true of your words. If you want to have a positive impact it’s important to choose every word carefully.
Several years after my conversation with my friend, I heard Maya Angelou speak about words. I will leave you with a short video of her talking about words. She has the language to explain the importance, and I’ve learned from experience that what she says is true.
Every word matters.