When we send anything, we double and triple check, proofread, scan, check for grammar and punctuation, make sure all the openings are taped shut, check that all mechanisms are working perfectly. All of it to make sure we did it right, we’re safe, we are communicating clearly.
Then, almost inevitably, in a sentence talking about how fastidious we are in checking all the details, there is a typo. I see this in the resumes people send us all the time. Or you discover your dress has been hanging out the car door for thirty miles. The carefully shut bag has a hole in it.
Doing things right is not hard. In fact, it’s downright easy. Having procedures that are followed to the letter helps guarantee near-perfection. The thing is, not doing it right is an inevitability of success.
The perfectly worded letter or email rarely catches attention. We notice the one with the typo. Our imperfections, for worse or better, forge connections. We categorize, note, weed out, or connect based on complimentary character. Character is born of imperfection and difference. Interaction occurs because of our respective imperfections, not in spite of them.
Kelly Hobkirk - teaching marketers how to harness strategy, goals, reality, and purpose to connect and do better work.
Kelly Hobkirk has been helping companies succeed in creative ways for nearly 25 years. His work has been featured in Time Magazine, and books by Rockport and Rotovision. Get exclusive articles when you sign up for his monthly newsletter.