Short + Sweet. Behind the Scenes.
A valentine to the writer Michael Pollan. And inspiration for you.
I began the year inspired by Pollan’s brevity.
“Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”
Pollan here distills his expansive work + reporting on the damage done by the industrialization of food in the West into seven words.
S-E-V-E-N words. And six of them, one syllable each. Succinct.
Wow.
Especially when you grasp the depth and richness of every word chosen. “Eat Food” is Pollan's call-to-arms against the havoc wrought by “nutritionism.” “Mostly Plants,” encapsulates all he's learned about the value of plant-based eating within an omnivore diet.
"Could I do the same?,” I wondered.
Could I take what I know and believe about communicating effectively (expressing your vision + yourself, moving others, and creating impact) and distill it to its essence? What would that look like?
How close could I come to Pollan’s three related thoughts and seven words?
So curtain pulled back, that’s been the inspiration for the posts I’ve been sharing with you over the last few weeks.
My approach to communications (and communications training) encapsulated in three related thoughts + a dozen words. Be:
If I had to trim again, I’d say: “Be Moment-Aware. Objective Clear. Present and Honest." So that’s 7, with one hyphenated word and a whiff of haiku. I’ll keep refining, still on the hunt for a couple of strong one-syllable words. Suggestions welcome.
I tell you this story because I want to inspire you to do the same. To distill your own philosophy of things.
The experience challenged me, but also released tons of creative energy, focus, and ambition.
One goal I gave myself this year was to continue sharpening my own positioning as a communications training company for wellness business owners. And then, to create a new offer around what makes me distinct.
I knew that act of distilling my expertise as a teacher, writer, editor, and coach would force those differences open.
So I could lean into them and unveil a new way for clients to work with me. Stay tuned, it’s coming soon!
To you now, I offer this line of thought and reflection:
How might you distill your expertise into a philosophy of three-related thoughts, and a dozen-words or less?
What beliefs or ideas do you hold most dear, and how does paring back show you what you value most?
Then moving forward, what it might it look like for you to lean into these core elements as you bring your healing work into the world?
Let me know what this brings up for you, here.