4 ms·
> If your writing is nonsense, maybe your thoughts are nonsense too! I was in a meeting at VeryBigCompany where someone presented a PRD for review. A large Wo
by crucini 17y ago
> If your writing is nonsense, maybe your thoughts are nonsense too!
I was in a meeting at VeryBigCompany where someone presented a PRD for review. A large Word document, projected. In theory this is a high leverage document; getting things right would make life easier downstream.
I noticed a few spelling errors, and gently pointed them out. I was ignored. Unwisely, no doubt, I sharpened my voice a bit and repeated the comment. The author recorded my comment with the air of someone humoring a small child.
Next I noticed grammatical errors. Some sentences had two plausible meanings; some had none.
To the other participants, the important thing was that the PRD touched on the key concepts. My focus on minutiae was inappropriate.
But to me, the flaws in expression signified flaws in thinking. I think Covington was right in this case, and the thoughts were nonsense too.
- abalashov 17y agoStrongly agreed. I encounter this reaction a lot when I do the same. Definitely with you.
- swombat 17y agoI used to think like you, until I started working with some brilliant people who can't spell, or produce grammatically correct writing, to save their life. Be careful with that indicator... it's far from a surefire signal.
- jacquesm 17y agoThat is so true. My partner in business is a lady that is dyslexic, but extremely smart. If I would be distracted by her spelling I'd miss the good stuff in the message It's very important to remember that language is a tool for communicating ideas, if you focus on the language as the 'end' you are forgetting it is only a 'means'.
- tedunangst 17y agoEven brilliant people can use a spell checker. And if you are presenting at any sort of formal meeting, wouldn't it be a good idea to show your presentation to someone before the main event? The fact that you can't spell doesn't mean you're stupid. The fact that you are unable to find a way to correct your spelling does.
- swombat 17y agoSpell checkers don't help with this level of poor language. And these people do use me as an editor when doing presentations and the like. But I get to see the full gory disaster that is their initial version, and what I'm saying is, I've learned not to discount their intelligence based on that.