"Why Fix an Apple?"

Since 2016 was the year of Tony Bennett's 90 birthday, it seems appropriate to conclude what has been a checkered 12 months with a Tony Bennett story. Many years ago, Bennett was struggling in terms of  how to reconcile his preferred choice of songs to sing and record with the growing influx of rock and roll music that was, at the time, beginning to dominate the music scene. He turned to his colleague and friend Count Basie for advice. How, he asked, should he adjust his style to adapt to these changes? How can he stay relevant? Basie responded with a very simple question: "Why fix an apple?"  

Indeed. Why change something that is working? Why change something that does not need to be fixed? This was and is true of Bennett's musical choices and, beyond that, true of the fundamental elements of effective communication: speaking in a direct, honest, thoughtful and respectful manner, listening with an open mind and in an equally respectful manner, and doing all one can to ensure the exchange continues in this way until its natural conclusion. Such a scenario represents the apple of communication. In all its simple, no-frills way, such a dynamic needs no fixing, tweaking or adjusting. It simply needs to be followed.

As has been well-documented, in 2016 so much of the communicating that occurred did not follow that formula. The well-entrenched division within the United States and lack of trust many people have for such established entities as government and the media are among the results of not only not following the steps that help ensure successful communication but ill-advised efforts to fix or improve-upon what does not need fixing or improvement. Talking over others or calling others names do not make one a better communicator. Putting forth misleading information is not the way to go either. Moving into 2017, it is clear that communication is not in need of repairs. Rather, it is the folks choosing to ignore what is perfect that should be realigned.