The Tower of Babel continues

In the ancient Bible, there is a legend that says when the Tower of Babel collapsed, God separated people by giving them different languages, so they could no longer communicate in the same unified way. But the truth is, even when we speak the same language and use the exact same words, we often end up talking as if we are from different channel.

I first noticed this at work. Even when people use the same terms, they actually mean different things. For example, when we talk about data governance in the context of the second line of defense in risk management, we refer to the practices to oversee data risk at the enterprise level. It’s about policies and standards. But for someone in the first line of defense, the same term refer to the tangible processes required to comply with those policies and standards.

I’ve learned that it’s incredibly important to use slightly different words that tailored to the audience — words that convey the same meaning but are easier to understand. This approach can significantly improve communication and reduce misunderstandings. Recently I had a coffee chat with someone outside of the bank. When I talked about my work, I chose my words carefully by not using the common terms in business environment. For instance, instead of saying “line of business,” which isn’t a familiar term for someone who hasn’t worked in corporate settings, I used “department” to describe our business partners. Small adjustments like this made the conversation much smoother. It might not be 100% accurate, but that’s never my goal — my main goal is to ensure the audience understands.

Communications are severely underrated and sometimes neglected in today’s world. Even when using the same words, people don’t always speak the same language. This morning I was listening to CBC’s podcast The House about Canada’s immigration consensus. The host mentioned that when the general public thinks about immigration, they often picture refugees or family reunification class, fearing that they will take resources funded by taxpayers. But in reality, most immigration tracks are for foreign students and foreign worker category. There’s a gap in understanding between immigration as a way to fill labour shortages and how the public perceives it. It’s so frustrating to hear from both sides and realize there’s such a huge communication gap. If the federal government could do a better job of helping the public understand how immigration works and why it is critical, it would be far more persuasive than simply promoting Canada as a open country. You can’t just throw your conclusions to people — you have to put yourself into their shoes and make them understand. In that sense, I can see why Trump is so popular. He ensures everyone listening to his speech understand what he’s saying, and he gave them the messages from their perspective and make them feel relevant.