Communication is not delivered; it is completed together
“Speech belongs half to the speaker and half to the listener.”
Source & reference
At a glance
- Clear speech alone does not complete communication.
- Meaning becomes understanding and action only when we consider the listener’s context and how the message is received.
Today’s reflection
Montaigne compares speaking and listening to a game in which a ball is passed back and forth. Just as the receiver must move in response to the throw, meaning is completed through interaction between speaker and listener.
- Clarity is judged by the listener’s understanding, not the speaker’s intention.
- Listening is active participation in the creation of meaning.
- Good writing and marketing reduce the reader’s cost of interpretation.
Instructions, strategic proposals, and marketing messages often fail not because the content is wrong, but because the sender stops at ‘I said it clearly.’ Communication should be measured by the understanding and next action it creates.
Practice for today
Before sending one important message today, write down what the other person should understand, feel, and do.
Afterward, ask them to restate the message briefly in their own words.
Question for today
Am I satisfied that I delivered the message, or am I checking what understanding it actually created?
Readers’ Reflections
What did this bring to mind? A few lines are enough.
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