Language, Obfuscation, and the Perception of Greatness LO21407

John Zavacki (jzavacki@greenapple.com)
Tue, 27 Apr 1999 06:18:13 -0400

I have three versions of this commentary in my drafts folder. Each of
them was spurred by some missive on this list which used a combination of
mixed metaphors and jargons. This one is a result of a peer evaluation in
my workplace. One of the improvement areas my peers chose for me was in
the area of language and its use. I am often overly technical, and tend
to ramble. This is, indeed, a truth.

Because of our philosophy of openness, honesty, and trust, we discuss,
even dialogue on 360 evaluations in both the team and the one-on-one
context. Although we work in an engineering context, we are all learning
to be generalists, that is, teachers, coaches, mentors. My own frame of
reference is W. Edwards Deming's System of Profound Knowledge, augmented
by the Vth Discipline and Stephen Covey's view of Principle-Centered
Leadership. Deming, Covey, Senge, and all of their disciples are
ultimately readable. There are no bifurcated emergences with overtones of
digestion. There are changes in behavior and level of knowledge. The
greatest challenge in any leadership role is the understanding of these
changes.The elements of the system which make change possible and even
comfortable must be understood as well. When we share our knowledge, our
observations, our fears, and our joys, we are both learning and teaching.
When we do this in the context of a community, albeit a factory, church,
university, or military unit, we are learning as an organization. As
individuals learn, and share that learning, as behavior changes and values
begin to point to principles as opposed to things organizations learn.
That is why I come to this list. To learn and, perhaps, to teach.

Embedded in my own learning are Christian and Eastern religious themes,
computational linguistics, a few antiquated models of psychology, military
training, and a search for the perfect art/science interface. All of this
can be written and spoken without the use of special language. It is all
a part of daily life. Dr. Deming taught me to teach in the language of the
audience. In this arena, however, I fear I have no competence. There has
become a new language. It is to me, a language of obfuscation,
reminiscent of the academic world in which people wrote about "suicide and
skepticism", "thinking about thinking", and other illogical extensions of
the basic truths of art and science designed to perpetuate the
intellectual myth.

I will be off to think with boy scouts, engineers, accountants, and the
odd computer scientist now. I've said my own two cents worth and won't be
spending more intellectual capital on this metatheoretical flight through
mind.

John Zavacki
jzavacki@greenapple.com

-- 


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