April 1st, 2016
Dear IABC/SC Members,
Because this letter is going out on April Fools’ Day, I was tempted to use it as a prank. But, then I got to thinking about the idiom “a fool’s errand.” Merriam-Webster defines it as a task that is “needless or profitless.”
That made me remember a recent post<http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2016/03/big-questions-before-little-ones.html> from my favorite blogger Seth Godin. In “[b]ig questions before little ones,” Godin reminded me that the most successful people are those who “refuse to engage with a fight about right when it’s vitally important to focus on important instead.”
The post really hit home with me because attention to detail has always seemed to be of utmost importance. But, is nitpicking grammar the best use of my time? Is one more graphic tweak really worth the time and expense of a 3rd change order? Will my client’s new project be more profitable because I made sure that the green on the logo was Pantone® 354 and not Pantone® 355? Or, could it be as Godin suggests, that worrying about that stuff is a defense mechanism I use to avoid the big, important work that is the most difficult.
Sure, sometimes the boss or client insists that grammar must be perfect or that art is just right. But often, professional communicators self-impose standards that are unimportant to others. (If you don’t believe me, read through some Facebook and Twitter posts from people you haven’t seen since high school).
Don’t get me wrong, I am not encouraging you to slack off. Just the opposite. Do good work. Heck, do great work. Just make sure you are focusing on what is truly important and not on any of those fool’s errands.
PS. Don’t forget about our behind-the-scenes tour of Colonial Life Arena on April 12th. Register here to learn how communicators at the venue lure big names and large crowds.
Kevin N. Floyd