talk is cheap

Everybody knows a big talker. You know, the person who's always got the most fantastic plans that just never seem to happen.  They are going to start this new company, or they are really gunna let this person have what's coming to them, or they are going to be getting a new something any day now.

You know. Big talkers.

So yeah, talk is cheap.  Everyone talks big to some extent. We like to talk about our dreams. It feels good. It's as if talking about them makes them more tangible.  The problem is that research has shown that when we talk about our goals to other people we become less likely to achieve them because just the act of telling someone what we want to do tends to give us a sense that we have already done it.

So the moral is, keep your mouth shut. At least when it comes to goal setting.  I learned that from a TED talk.

Here's another thing I learned: good friends are cheap therapy. Sometimes you just need a good bout of verbal diarrhea to feel better.  I'm not sure why, but just talking about my day to day grievances with my best friends makes me feel so much more normal, even if their response is "That's weird."

In general, I feel like I talk too much.  Kids will do that to a person. You can't just say something once. Oh no. You have to say it three times to be heard.  It's exhausting. So I bought a megaphone.

Let me tell you, it's the best thing I've purchased as a parent next to the punching bag (Mother's Day 2010).  I don't have to say things three times. I don't even have to raise my voice to call my kids from upstairs.  Believe me, if you have kids, you need one.  

It was cheap.