Those with Insufficient Goods Talk a Lot

There’s a Japanese saying that I recently came across: Kotoba ooki wa shina sukunashi. When loosely translated, it’s saying that “Those with insufficient goods talk a lot.” When I first heard this, a similar Western adage immediately sprang to mind—one from none other than Bill Shakespeare.

In his now world-famous play, Hamlet, Shakespeare uses the words of his hero’s mother, Queen Gertrude, to shine a light on how insincerity can (silently) shout through dialogue, especially when one reads between the lines. In the play, when Hamlet asks what she thinks of a dramatization Hamlet has orchestrated with actors to prove his uncle murdered his father, Queen Gertrude’s responds, “The lady doth protest too much, methinks.” This points to her distaste—and distrust—of the heroine within the play’s insincere overacting.

 Empty Talk Makes Noise … and That’s About it.

The queen’s words reveal the all-too-familiar human response to doubt and distrust a speaker whose speech is ripe with over-exaggeration and unnecessary embellishment. To put it bluntly: superfluous speech smacks of insincerity. It leads one to wonder: Why the need for such elaboration if what you say is indeed the truth as it is?

 Or let’s go back to childhood and remember our playground days when there was always that one big talker that would not stop running his or her mouth (you know the one), and those magical two words were all that were needed to instantly shut them up: “PROVE IT!” (Because let’s face it, they couldn’t).

 What do all of these classic scenarios and examples have in common? Someone was over-inflating the actual truth of the matter. And not only is boasting or being overly talkative tacky, but it looks like you are trying to compensate for a shortfall.

 Talk is Cheap

 Without proof or substance to back what you say, your words are merely vocal sounds—echoes of empty promises. To put it bluntly, your words bear no weight without action. They’re like promises lite, and in my world, I want the real deal. And I am willing to bet that I am in the majority here, especially in the business world.

 The premise of this is simple: Those who haven’t got the goods to back up what they say, just keep … talking. Their sad and desperate hope is that whoever is listening will be so caught up and swayed by their sweet talk that they will fail to be alerted to the elephant in the room—the simple fact that they have absolutely nothing of substance to support their claims.

 As we go about our business (professionally and personally), let’s take this somewhat of a warning to heart and actively pursue authenticity in all our interactions. As shown above, this may mean scaling back on our enthusiasm or bend toward exaggeration in lieu of simple honesty and directness—maybe even (gasp!) a little more listening and less talking. Because if Queen Gertrude has taught us anything, it’s that being too talkative is tacky—and telling.