A common message I impart in my articles, my presentations and my advice to professionals and students is that words matter. What you say … and how you say it, is critical in the achievement of a successful career and thriving relationships (both personal and professional). Speech and the way we use words is the most straightforward form of communication and the most effective way for another person to understand want we want, how we feel—and how we’ll behave.

But words are not always reliable. They can deceive, mislead and confuse. Their omission can have the same effect and can serve as valued weapons for avoidance and dishonesty. And many, if not all of you reading this article, have relied on the words of another (or the absence thereof) at one time or another—only to be punched in the gut with the realization that what you relied on to be truth … was not. So in this current environment, how do we interpret the world as it really is? How do we know what’s real? How do we know what … and whom to rely on?