Don’t Confuse Your Audience. Get Your Message Across

If you are a writer, public speaker, or both, you have come to realize how vitally important it is to be as precise as you can in delivering your message. While there are literally hundreds of words that are often confused and used inappropriately, here I’m only initially identifying twelve words that in my experience are often confused and which I confess to sometimes confusing them myself. Here they are:
 
1. Principal, principle. These often confused words have clearly defined and distinguishable meaning. As an noun, principle means a sum of money, a chief person, the head man. The principal invested in that scheme amounted to $5000. The principal of this school is a woman of remarkable vigor. As an adjective, principal means main or foremost. His principal aim is to get well.  Again, principle, as a noun only, means a governing rule or truth, a doctrine, a determined course of action. The manager is a man of sound ethical principle.

2.Rational, rationale. Rational, an adjective, means of sound mind, sane, logical, reasonable, sensible. Your explanation is entirely rational. This is a rational plan for lowering the sales tax in this state. Rationale, a noun, means, a logical basis, fundamental reasons,  and exposition of principles. I cannot understand the rationale for your actions. Does deliberate cruelty ever have a defensible rationale?

3. Orient, orientate. Each of these verbs means to familiarize with conditions, to adjust to surroundings. This training program will  orient (or orientate) you in your new position. The lectures are designed to  orient all recruits. Orient is preferable to orientate and is much more commonly used.

3. Belittle, disparage. These words are related in meaning: to speak of as unimportant, to regard something as less  important or impressive than it apparently is. Disparage is a stronger word than belittle in that intends to bring reproach or discredit upon the topic being considered, whereas belittle means simply to make less, to minimize. Don’t belittle my efforts, I’m trying hard.

4. Lonely. Lonesome. These words mean about the same thing and are frequently  used interchangeably. A lonely person is likely to be lonesome because  he is without companions or remote from places of human habitation. Lonesome rather than lonely is more often to mean isolated, desolate, and unfrequented. The narrow path wound through a lonesome stretch of the country. Lonely conveys a feeling of dejection, or sadness. Janet was in tears because she felt so lonely.

5. Eminent, imminent. Eminent means distinguished, high in rank, noteworthy. An eminent statesmen. Imminent, means about to occur, impending, . An imminent rain  squall.

6. Monologue, dialogue. From Greek terms meaning one word or one person, monologue refers to a speech by one person. Dialogue, from Greek words meaning two words or two speeches, refers to conversation between two or more persons. Dialogue is popularly used to refer to an exchange of ideas on the issues of politics, human rights, economics, religion. The managers and workers in this plant should have a dialogue about their common problems. 



For the correct pronunciation of these words, refer to a good desktop college edition dictionary.  


Look for more clarification of confusing words in a future post.

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The Benefits to the Body of Specific Types of Physical Activities

Aerobic Exercising

If several of your close blood relatives have had heart at­tacks before the age of sixty, you're likely to have one too unless you eliminate all the other possible risk factors. 

Don't have a fatalistic view about heart disease because so many of your close relatives died young from heart attacks. 

Chances are your ill-fated parents or siblings smoked, were overweight, were diabetic with poor sugar control, had el­evated cholesterol levels, and rarely exercised. Genes are only part of the story. 

Regardless of your genetic vulnera­bility, correcting any obvious abnormalities will improve your outlook considerably.

Regular exercise, that's sufficiently rigorous, protects the coronary arteries. However, you've got to pay attention to the other risk factors as well. Dr. William Castelli, the di­rector of the Framingham Heart Study, estimates that half the doctors running in the Boston Marathon have abnormal cholesterol levels—and don't know it!

You're most likely to stay with your exercise program if you enjoy it. Few people will continue for very long with a regimen that they find boring. Brisk walking for thirty minutes a day or vigorous gardening are enough. If you prefer, you may also run, jog, dance, bike, or swim, pro­vided your doctor has cleared you to do so. Walking briskly for about three miles (you can pick any other form of ex­ercise) was found to reduce the risk of a heart attack by 64 percent in male Harvard alumni. (Graduates of Princeton, Yale, and Cornell can probably expect the same good re­sults.)

Aerobic exercises such as walking or running (as opposed to stretching and weight-lifting) exert their beneficial effect in several ways:
a. They lower your resting heart rate and blood pressure, thus easing the burden on your heart.
b. They reduce cholesterol and triglycerides, raise the good HDL and lower the bad LDL.
b. They drop the blood sugar in diabetic.
c. They help prevent osteoporosis.
c. They decrease the proportion of body fat.
e. And, they reduce stress and improve mood.
All in all, exercise is a good prescription against heart attack.

Finally, besides improving your physical health and increasing your longevity, exercise can have short-term and long-term psychological benefits. Physical activity can reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression and improve mood and well-being.

Six Keys for Growing and Managing Your Business

If you are a fellow member of the self-employed, then your time is money. Time wasted is money wasted. Not only must you handle your time effectively, you also must have certain tasks pre-identified that will help you to both manage and grow your business.

Here are six keys that I have found to be useful:

1. Organize your day into time segments associated with specific tasks. Look at the specific tasks that allow you to both manage your consultancy and keep it growing. Here are some tasks that I have found to be necessary in my consultant work: Accounting, Organizing, Copywriting (including article and blog writing), Phone Calls, Letter Writing (including e-mailing), and Meetings.

2. Associate the time of day which you work best on each task. For example, I don't like to end my day with a disorganized desk so Organizing would be the last task I will do. The beginning of my day will be devoted to writing blogs and articles. During that time I tend to be fresher, more alert, and more creative. I allow time for Phone Calls during the day integrated with time set aside for Meetings. Letter Writing and Accounting are tasks that I do two or three times a week as needed. I periodically allow time for Letter Writing in the morning after Copywriting and an hour in the evening for Accounting before Organizing.

3. Check your e-mail during the time during the day that you would start your Phone Calls task. Follow up as needed or "star" the item for later follow up.

4. Set up a form to capture the essence of the conversations you have during the day. You need to capture the date, the person, the phone number, and the conversation. Just write it down when the conversation has ended. If you have a computer application to record the conversation, do it later.

5. Learn to use the keyboard instead of being a slave to the mouse. Use keyboard shortcuts for opening Microsoft Explorer (winkey key + E); to bring the desk top of other windows (winkey + D); and to minimize all windows (winkey +M). Use Ctrl + A to select all text; Ctrl +X, to cut selected items; and, Ctrl + V to paste selected items.

6. Have a specific time to end your day. You need time for Rest, Reflection, and Rejuvenation. Keep the three Rs in mind always. Do not allow yourself to be burned out. Keep stress at a minimum.Use it to spur yourself to greater achievement.

When Organizing, be sure to prepare for next day. Do not retire for the evening until this is done.


Do you have some keys that you have found to be effective?
Leave your comments below.