The Best of Everything

I just returned from New York City where I visited my daughter, who lives in Brooklyn. Not that I have traveled nearly as much as I would like or have seen all that many big cities in the world, but I believe it is safe to say there is no other metropolitan site in the world as the one called "The Big 'Apple." It is exciting and carries with it an electricity that is undeniable. My daughter has lived there, including her years in college in Manhattan, for over ten years. While no one knows what the future will be, my daughter says she cannot imagining living any where else simply because New York City has "the best of everything." Restaurants, entertainment, culture and opportunity are among the specific examples she sites.

While I am not about to disagree with my daughter, her comments got me to thinking about the definitiveness of "best of everything." Is there really a "best of everything" that everyone agrees upon? Do we all agree, for instance, on what is the best pizza? Is there a best religion? How about the best movie? Is there one that literally everyone agrees is the best one? (I raise that question as a guy who swears the original "Angels in the Outfield" starring Paul Douglas tops all comers.) Obviously, the answer to those questions and a million others like it is "no." There is no "best of everything." While it might make things easier on some level, I suspect it is better that we all have different opinions on what is the best of something or, for that matter, the worst.

It is certainly that way in communication. Even if there were a universally-acclaimed number one communication strategy, then I strongly doubt that one way of communicating or that one special phrase would hold onto its "best" trophy for long. For one reason, those on the receiving end of communiques are permanently shifting targets. Messages or phrases that are successful one day are more likely not to work the next time. People's perceptions change. Their willingness to listen varies from day to day. New competing communication efforts emerge every day along with various distractions that potentially detract from their effectiveness. The solution to this reality is for people to do the best they can each day whether they are making a new pizza, producing a new movie or launching a new communication strategy. In today's world, there may not be a "best," but there certainly is a "good." In fact, for our ever-changing world, "excellent" should be the new "best."