Results

There are so many actions we take that have definitive results. We are out of milk so we run to the store and buy a new carton. Done and done. We like someone so we ask them out on a date. They accept. Check that off, too. Such actions where there is a clear goal and a clear result provide us with a sense of accomplishment and closure. We can move onto the next action with a sense of not having to clean up after ourselves or tie up any loose ends. It feels good. On weekends, for example, I confess to feeling pleased with myself when I achieve all the items on my list of chores. Scratching everything off the list does present its own special brand of satisfaction.

Unfortunately, not every action we take or attempt is so clear-cut. Many do not provide us with the definitive result we seek. Going back to the example of the date, ideally we take such a step with the hope it will go well, that we and our companion will have a good time. Suppose one or both of us don't?  Or suppose both parties do and that each agrees to go out a second time. Either way, the result becomes not quite so definitive. We cannot look back at the experience with a sense of total completeness. What may have begun as a simple, fairly straightforward act has now become more complex.

Given this reality, I say "welcome to the world of communication!" Many acts of communication do not give us the sense of closure that, say, going to the grocery store does. At best, that coveted sense is temporary. For instance, the public relations worker devises a strategy to elicit a strong turnout to a particular event. It goes well, yet there is the realization that a second event must now be addressed. More planning is needed. And so it goes. Professional communicators often do not have the luxury of experiencing a sense of total satisfaction the way most of do with those weekend chores. Results sought by the communicator are more nuanced and elusive.