I love you. I’m sorry. You’re fired.
Pretty much everything else can be done with innuendo and body language. Those three things and every story and explanation that requires on of them, must be said out loud. They must be spoken and heard. There is no room for verbal tiptoeing or hyperbole. They need to be stated, in no uncertain terms.
I didn’t say enough of any of those three things when I was growing up. I didn’t tell my friends that I loved them. I didn’t say I was sorry when I lied or screwed up. And, I most certainly did not fire nearly enough of my ideas, friends or time-wasting experiences.
I daily fire things that aren’t important enough now. I hear that I am loved by my children and wife every Morning and Night (and usually once or twice in the middle of the day, too). I apologize for royally tanking or not staying on top of or not working with or being overzealous much of my time. And I am better for it. By saying these words out loud as often as I do, I know that I have actually made connections that are worth something. Each one of these statements requires an investment to have been made. Loving is an ongoing relationship, apologies are a reassessment of the relationship, and firing is an end to the relationship.
The only thing that is missing is the beginning of one. But relationship starts are almost always about a movement: A handshake, an eye roll, a sideways glance or even a cold shoulder. These are the kinds of things we need innuendo for. It is once we get past that, though, that we need words. To put it another way, beginnings are easy. Everything else needs work.
