A wise old owl sat on an oak
The more he heard, the less he spoke.
The less he spoke, the more he heard.
Wasn’t he a wise old bird?
This rhyme
was often said by John Wooden, the greatest coach for the UCLA Bruins Men’s Basketball
team. Wooden used to share this saying with his student-athletes to help them
understand that listening is more powerful than talking.
It also,
helped to remind me of using the OWL Method, Like the bird, the OWL.
The “O” which stands for "Observe." Look at the world around you. What stands out?
What grabs your attention? What’s
ordinary, yet significant? Your eyes have the opportunity to observe if you look.
I’ll skip over, to the “L” which
stand for "Listen". What do you hear
now? Are the sounds melodic or messy? Do you hear that? Are the sounds around you balanced or benign,
or deep and disturbing? Are your ears, open
to the music in the air or do you even audience to the sounds around you?
Now back to the middle letter. The “W” which stands for “Write”. Write down what you see and hear. The “W” unifies the “O” and the “L” and makes
you more aware of the world around you. Write with an eye that describes what you see and an ear of what you hear happening around you.
Writing makes me a better speaker because
when you write I clarify my thoughts. When I have
clarity, I come to conciseness, which is being brief. This
process gives a speaker the opportunity to be efficient with their words, yet get their point in an effective and memorable
way.
The “OWL” Method consists of
observing, listening and writing. and helps me unify my speaking to be a more effective communicator.
A wise old owl sat on an oak
The more he heard, the less he spoke.
The less he spoke, the more he heard.
Wasn’t he a wise old bird?
