Power of Positive Words: A Strategic Communication Perspective(Won the Best Paper Award)
Dr. Senthil Kumar Ph.D.
Knowledge for Freedom, Enlightenment, and Positive Action | School of Fish Strategy Consulting |
"Noblest is the Justest" - Aristotle?
A Small body of determined spirits fired by an unquenchable faith in their mission can alter the course of history – Mahatma Gandhi
Link to the full article:?https://doi.org/10.1108/JOCM-05-2018-0140 or
In the beginning was the “word” profess scriptures. Words have laid the foundation for?all thought systems across the world. Words charged with utmost meaning turn into literary work that can stand the test of time. Words manifest in many forms – axioms,?parables, metaphors, stories, and hymns – and form the basis of our culture, organizations,?and socio-economic-political systems. Religions have spread and political institutions are?built with the stories and fables of mystical legends and deeds.
Words not only connote?the objective phenomena that determine our lives but also assist in the creation and?enactment of the novel, imaginative or subjective ideals that shape our lives and provide?meaning to our existence. In fact, the very purpose and meaning of human existence are?often governed by words and the subjective worlds that we construct with words. Words?constitute the cognitive capacity – an important trait of biological order – which?differentiates humans as superior and sentient in comparison to other lives on the planet.?Consistent positive communications shape thoughts, behaviors and help transform?individuals and organizations, and are known to greatly foster progress, change and?success.
Words expand the cognitive and physical spheres of human activity, and can induce the?needs and desires, and thus drive us to seek, design, or pursue the products, services, or?lifestyles. Take, for instance, the subject of “affinity” – we have an abundant number of words?to express this central dimension of human relationship: love, compassion, affection,?kindness, kinship, friendship, motherhood, brotherhood, fraternity, partnership,?companionship, and compatriotship; each word, however, takes on a new dimension?bestowing the foundation for a variety of ideals, values, and forms of associations. Several classical and modern philosophical works have reflected upon how words can help us imagine and create a world of new institutions and phenomena – be they are subjective or objective – that give us meaning and happiness. Similarly, organizational scholars have traced how expressive communications play a central role in the creation, diffusion, and change of institutions that govern collective thoughts, intentions, and behaviors. Seen in this light, words have the potential to create quite distinct thought worlds and organizational systems and thus can expand our cultural sphere.?
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Figurative and metaphorical communication can be of great help in conceptualizing the?abstract and vibrant changes emerging in the marketplace. Markets are quite dynamic with?a constant rendering of complex market segments, novel product configurations, and?uncommon patterns of consumer behaviors. Through the right metaphors, managers can?provide the contextual verbalization required to capture the complex configurations or?emergent outliers. As dynamic industry and market changes are often unobserved or?overlooked, communication charged with provocative axioms and metaphors can play a?critical role in sensitizing the managerial cognition so that the emergent social phenomena?can be effectively captured for managerial analysis and decision making (Muthusamy, 2008;?Newberg and Waldman, 2012; Simon, 1993; Weick et al., 2005).
?From the communication and sense-making perspectives, first, we discuss the role of?positive communication in terms of genuine, considerate expression of words, axioms, stories?or metaphors in the functioning of organizations and markets. Second, we narrate how managerial communication involving positive stories, metaphors, or axioms nurtures the?social capital necessary for organizational change by spawning the shared cognitive-linguistic?domains.
Further, we examine the empirical link between positive communication and?organizational transformation by a two-fold analysis of survey data collected from?174 management professionals who have recently undergone the organizational change?episodes such as restructuring, re-engineering, TQM adoption, or new strategy?implementation. The survey elicited responses on the extent and content of literal and?metaphorical communications echoed by the leaders/managers during the change episode,?and whether these discourses had the transforming effect on the organization in terms of?resolving conflicts, overcoming resistance to change, or implementing a new strategy.??With the content analysis of narratives containing metaphors, axioms, and stories reported by?the respondents, we unravel the underlying clusters of organizational and socio-cognitive?dimensions associated with organizational transformation and demonstrate how?transformation is manifested through considerate communication of positive words.?
?Link to the full article:?https://doi.org/10.1108/JOCM-05-2018-0140 or https://ssrn.com/abstract=2479746