Just Like Cake

Baking is easy. Baking can be easy.

Oh, sure, some might argue there’s an art to cooking. (I’m not saying culinary skills don’t exist.) But for me, I think the nitty-gritty of what’s going on in the kitchen isn’t that important. I mean, we only care about the process if it effects the taste, right?

And that’s where it might get a little confusing.

You would think that if you get the right ingredients and follow the right recipe, then you should come out with a pretty good cake. Sometimes that’s true. For many people that’ll indeed do the trick.

But the effort in the kitchen isn’t the only thing that effects the taste. What if someone just doesn’t like cheesecake? Personal preference can be a huge block. In this case, cheesecake won’t have any appeal no matter how good it’s supposed to be. Maybe someone drops the plate of cake right as it’s being handed it to you. Part of it might still be edible, but now the whole experience is kind of soured.

There’s a lot of other factors that come into play.

All I’m saying is, it’s very possible for a bakesmith to put their blood, sweat, and tears into making the best cake they can. And in the end, it can still turn out “bad”.

Luckily, the opposite can also be true. Maybe you threw in way too many chocolate chips. Maybe you overcooked it a little bit. And still, people ate it all up with a smile on their face.

Communication is a lot like that.

I see people sweating over trying to find “the right words”. Use the right words and you’ll create the right message. That’s what they think, but miscommunication still manages to pop up. Could be that you dropped the ball on your delivery, or maybe just maybe there was just something beyond your control– something that wouldn’t let the other person digest the message no matter how you served it.

I’ve seen this too many times in language acquisition. Those who are learning English think if they could just master all the grammar and vocabulary, they’d be good to go to speak.

For all these people, they’re not wrong, just misguided. Don’t miss the forest because you’re focused on a single tree. The preparation, the technique, the passion you put into your words won’t mean a thing if you lose sight of your message.

At the same time, you can be ill-prepared. You can lack technique. You can botch your delivery and more, yet still communicate effectively as long as you keep this priority: connecting with another human being.