I’m Retiring “I’m Sorry,” and Here’s Why

As I rushed to put the finishing touches on my Vegetable Pasta with Tomato-Pepper Sauce, I knocked Steve – who was prepping his own dinner – in the arm. Again. And again. And yet again. Each time, I punctuated the accidental assault with an “I’m sorry.”

After about the fifth time Steve, who bless him has lost his patience all of about six time in almost ten years, gently turned to me and said, “Then please stop saying you’re sorry.”

And then the “aha” hit me. “Sorry” was the least productive thing I could say to him, or to anyone, when I want to take responsibility for something I’ve done wrong. And here’s why:

(CLICK HERE is you are unable to see the video below).

While saying “I’m sorry,” for most of us, is a self-defeating communication habit we’ve cultivated through years of practice, I believe it’s also our failure to organize what we really want to say that keeps us spouting out the overused, non-action oriented phrase – and others like them. A lack of organization is at the heart of a lot of our communication blunders. And I’m SO psyched to be speaking in Las Vegas at an International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) breakfast in the gorgeous Trifecta Gallery downtown (along with my brilliant friend, professional organizer Brenda Prinzavalli), on November 8 about how to organize our thinking, minimize anxiety and mental chatter and communicate our messages so that people can hear and take action from them.

Here are the deets - http://iabcnovembercoffeecommunicators.eventbrite.com/. If you are in Las Vegas, I hope to see you there.