“Because if your words are vague enough, and you don’t commit — you cannot be wrong.”
Story Art — the school Principal’s desire to look smart, not be smart.
“From the Principal of the highest performing school known to mankind. Our new rule is to get teachers to have one on one weekly time with each student. We want to pre-empt roadblocks and get students firing at top of their game” Principal Thomas laughed, as he continued typing.
“We want our students to kick ass. And our teachers to dominate. So teachers need to dig deep to know exactly whats holding each kid back, and where to jump in. Before it all goes downhill. Like Prison Break after Season 1.”
He let out another childish giggle. Amused by his own wordplay. Then quickly highlighted everything he just wrote, and pressed delete.
He mused at the thought of sending out something that simple for his latest bulletin, which he had just sat down to write. It was the crux of what he needed to say anyway. But if he did send that, parents would think an incompetent moron was heading the school they were paying top dollar to send their kids to.
Principal Thomas is in charge of a 2,000+ student school. The top performing in the country, and has more qualifications next to his own name than his email signature can handle.
“Dear Readers,” he began again.
And like every other time he wrote these, which was every 3 months, it took longer for him to make them look intelligible, and sound clever, than actually worrying about the message he was trying to get across.
At the front of his mind, he pictured these two or three parents and a couple of members of staff that he knew would read the bulletin. The ones he wanted to impress. So as he typed, he visualised them reading his words and nodding in awe.
He wrote in long formal words, with arcane language, and abstractions like “segmented evaluation procedures” and “unique departmental scheduling”. These types of phrases, he thought, were what smart people said.
Every few words were followed by a right click to the thesaurus, and sometimes a Google search, to find synonyms that were obscure enough to indicate a great vocabulary.
Pondering how to say what he had to say. More than actually saying it. As if writing in a simple style would indicate a simple mind.
In the need to prove one’s worth, executives like him, often produce work which on the surface appears clever, but has little substance.
Because underneath the mask, there is actually a child who is afraid.
As a young kid, Principal Thomas didn’t get much attention. He wasn’t very popular. He had dreamed of being a part of the group of cool kids his whole schooling life. When this group walked past him it was as if they floated on clouds, violins started playing in the background, and a majestic glow showered them from the heavens.
He longed to be recognised. He wanted people to wish they were like him. He fantasised that the good looking girls would follow him around with ogling eyes. Yet, he was a nerd that most didn’t know existed. His group of friends were nerds. The ones that talk about studies during their lunch break, and were fascinated by mathematical and science proofs after school.
He realised he wasn’t going to become the jock at his school, nor was he going to fall into a rock band and become its long-haired lead singer, or the full forward for his football team.
So he used intellectual pursuits as his way to rise above others and fill that gap. An area in which he excelled. He got the highest of grades, completed more publications than anyone before him in his field, made commencement speeches for both his school and several universities, and awarded many prestigious honours during his years.
So as Principal Thomas stared at his screen, he was reminded of these distant memories. And how today, he is there. The most accomplished out of that cool group from school. Out of all his university counterparts. Out of all his close friends.
All this warm feeling of attention he always wanted, it’s come to him because of his smarts. And now that’s his identity. So the actions he takes are motivated in trying to protect that identity.
That’s why his fingers tremble at the thought of leaving a sentence that may be too basic. There is more to lose by writing in plain talk than in inflated verbiage.
Because if your words are vague enough, and you don’t commit — you can’t be wrong.
So. After an entire day spent slaving away at his screen, he signs off with his name, and sends the final version to his assistant.
And maybe that’s the problem. Maybe if his name wasn’t on it, he would write something that the readers would understand. Something that they didn’t have to translate line by line. Something that they’d care about. Something that was actually written for them and not for the author himself.
As his assistant presses send, and the email hits the inbox of parents and staff of the school. It doesn’t come from another human being. It comes from a man wearing a mask. People, however, like to hear from the man.
So as soon as they read the first line of the email, without hesitation, they press delete.
Simple requires hard work and clarity, formal doesn’t. Which is why simple works and formal doesn’t.
Story Art is a new genre of art, one that brings the two most powerful ways of spreading a message for the past 5,000+ years together — storytelling and art. The art is illustrations sourced from some of the greatest illustrators I can find. The stories I write myself.
For more of my story arts — check them out here.
Or if you prefer a little email reminder — I send a weekly story art via email — a lesson, a takeaway, and a counter-intuitive idea that could change the way you tackle life — click here for MORE…
