On the importance of brevity

I write and speak in a variety of contexts and roles. At home I write for myself in something called a morning page, a concept I learned to use from the book, The Artist's Way. There, I write whatever I want to say, but I must fit what I want to say into a single page of my word processor (LibreOffice for those who want to know). Some people say you get more mileage writing by hand, but that depends on why you write. In either case, the process is therapeutic. When I finish writing my morning page, I've said everything I wanted to say, and I've said the most important things I want to say, regardless of who I will encounter today. Brevity is the skill of making it all fit on a single page.

Brevity is often required due to lack of space and/or time. Brevity requires me to produce the most salient points and to make them fit within the space and time allowed. Brevity requires me to prioritize my thoughts and organize them for my audience in a way that hopefully, they will enjoy, or take notice of. Brevity requires me to get to the point, quick.

Long ago, in a past life, I used to attend group therapy. At the end of every session, Jason, the facilitator of the meeting, would ask everyone to stand together and put their arms on each others' shoulders. Then he would say something like, "OK, now everybody look around and think of the most important thing you want say to someone else here in this group. If you have something to say, say it now because tomorrow, that person might get hit by a bus." This practice is based on the idea that most people experience grief not just because of a loss. People experience grief because they did not have the chance to say what they wanted to say to the person they lost.

I don't always think consciously in those terms, but it is in the back of my mind. I say what I need to say because fate can be swift. And whatever I have to say, I keep it brief and to the point so that not a moment is wasted on something trivial. This isn't to say I lack humor, for humor is one of the gifts I share with everyone I know, and one of the most important to me. This is to say, that if I say something to you, I want to say it to you before you go, and that I mean what I say. Every word.

In the workplace, I use brevity in my writing. As a software analyst, I often write emails to system administrators. I keep my emails brief knowing that the intended audience is busy. I keep my paragraphs short and uncluttered with pleasantries and formalities. I use short numbered lists to review the action plan or points discussed. I want them to be able to sum up what I need to communicate to them in a few seconds so that they know what's coming or what I did. I want my communication to be easy for an admin to mentally file for later review.

Lately, it's been hard to find the time to write, but I've noticed something of late. I'm prioritizing Steemit over all other social media with what time is left. Obviously, I'm changing my priorities because there's real money at stake here, but also because there is community here. I have not been trolled once here. I have not been addressed by a pejorative even once here. Everyone here seems to respect everyone else's opinion. We can agree to disagree. No harm no foul. I came here to get paid to write. I stayed here for the community.

I can't help but feel that I'm working with a more enlightened audience here. When I do get my point across, I get valuable feedback. When I miss, I still get feedback, but it's not painful feedback. I would like to write more here and I hope that by putting it out there, in the universe, that the time to write here will appear. My tiny little brain is no match for the universe, so I've developed a few other skills: patience and perseverance and I'm applying them here and now.

But for now, I'll keep it brief until more time appears.