One time, I had a boss that asked me to write a proposal for something or other, for like a recreation contract or something. For a weight room, and why we needed the equipment or something. At the time, my father did it for a living, he wrote proposals all the time and on a big time basis, lots of money involved. So I had my father write the thing for me. I mean, I never was Mr. Student, never too proud to ask for help. My Dad wrote it, cut and dried, black and white , very few words, right to the point.
I showed it to my boss, and ya know what he said?
"Oh no, Jim! It needs a lot more flowery language, you need to make it sound really important."
And then I realized. And then I realized that it isn't what you know, and how quickly that you get to the point, it's all about trying to make it sound as complicated as possible so you can impress people with your knowledge or lack thereof and just use a bunch of big words so that the person reading it feels stupid that they don't know those words but is too afraid to ask what they mean or they may look stupid themselves.
Oh, I was so naive. I thought that everyone wanted to be straight to the point, straight up and forthright. I always thought that was the case. You squatted the weight or you didn't. You made the tackle or you didn't. You won or you didn't. Simple.
Hell no, they don't. Because when you are like that, all upfront, you are then waiting on action. The point has been made and now, everybody gets it, so let's MOVE.
But that's too much. Who wants to move? Hell, let's talk about it a little. Set an agenda. Write some stuff down, talk about it! Let's talk, have a meeting and think about it some more. No, it's time to have a meeting, brainstorm and use some of these new fangled techniques to make all of it sound such a big deal that people will think, oh, how smart everyone is these days! Let's make it real complicated so that we can have 4000 meetings to discuss the discussion and use catchy phrases that most haven't heard but goddamn they sound so smart, but you really read it out of some freaking book, and your mentor said, oh you need to handle him this way and her that way and this meeting this way, all a bunch of useless crap.
FAKE , fake fake
I love the books and stuff that talk about how to win friends and influence people and make people do what you want them to do, and guess what? It's all wrong. All that ass kissing language is going the wrong way. The right way is-here it is, love it or leave it, take it to heart or don't. But there shouldn't be ambiguity in the whole thing, whatever it may be. I start to think that being blunt and upfront is wrong because, well, I can't find very many folks who are like that, or who think that is the way to be. It is, you know? You get it, don't you? That being upfront is the best way? That hurting some feelings is better than speaking out of both sides of your mouth? If you don't think that is the best way,
I feel really sorry for you.
It's ok, put me with the dinosaurs. I will take it.
No, that squat was high. Now, do it better. Get your depth. You know what to do, now do it like you have been taught.
Alright, set up strong here. Get your feet set! Huge breath, push your belly against that belt! Fierce here, really tight and don't stop pushing! PUSH! Yes, now THAT squat was deep. And you earned it. And that smile that you just gave me is because I didn't give a damn thing to you, you actually did it right and you earned it. Straight up and straight to the point and the truth.
