• Home
  • About
  • Subscribe
  • Community
  • Contact

SMARTY.

The human side of business

Small Business

Just.

March 13, 2018 · By Amy Swift Crosby

@smnyc

This typography took about 6 minutes. And 23 years.

Funny thing about this word…

We use it to imply “merely” when what we really mean is just the opposite.

“Can you just tweak this design?”
“Can you just re-write this page?”
“Can you just tell us what’s missing?”

Here’s how I see it. If you are the one doing the asking, then it’s not “just” something. It’s actually “the” something that is most important to you; it’s the one thing you want me/us/them to do fix/consult/improve… because it matters and because you want it done by someone who knows how best.

If you are the one being asked, you may recognize the dynamic and share this perspective. To “just” offer digital strategy, or “just” eyeball the numbers or “just” whip up the design is only possible because of hard-earned experience. In our world, “just” ignores the hours in the trenches it took to get here. This word also may also trigger the alarm bells of someone who wants to justify asking for lower fees or who expects a quicker turnaround. This could be true for an artist, instructor, writer, creative director, contractor, service provider- -or anyone who does something you can’t do, and who makes it look easy because it’s their 1,000th rodeo.

I’m not saying I don’t make this mistake on the regular – I forget or overlook the minimizing effects this can produce, too. But I try to stop myself from using “just” in front of a favor or project I need someone to do for me knowing the effect it can have on me. Assuming to know how long something really takes relies on guesswork. And even if I’m right and it takes them less than 10 minutes, the only reason that’s true is because they’re really good and very experienced at doing what they do.

Not trying to nitpick. But a little awareness to an oft-misguided presumption that shows up in what are otherwise earnest communications will hopefully allow more good deeds to be done. Language that implies appreciation for the importance of a service goes a lot farther than unwittingly minimizing (and thus diminishing) another person’s talent at it.

I have found that the best requests express the assumption that we actually have no idea what goes into making “it” happen for someone else…and our best shot and getting what we need is acknowledging that.

Just sayin’.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)

Share

Share
Tweet
Email
Pin
Comment
Previous
Next

Comments Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Topics

  • Small Business
  • Big Life
  • Small Towns
  • Big Brands
  • Popular Posts
  • Uncategorized

About Me

photo of Amy Swift Crosby

Amy Swift Crosby is a brand strategist and copywriter who has positioned or voiced messaging across the commercial spectrum, from icons like Ford, BVLGARI, Pottery Barn, Pantene and Virgin, to boutique brands like The Wild Unknown, fitness franchise Barre3 and the rebrand of legendary metaphysical bookstore, Bodhi Tree. She has leveraged this expertise to help entrepreneurial women and small businesses owners hone their skills, mission and message, while uncovering their own “voice.” This blog explores “the human side of business,” and universal themes like uncertainty, anxiety, the tension between engagement and disconnection, personal value and most importantly, of finding - and hearing - our own voices in our everyday life.

Photo - Andrew Stiles

Subscribe

Get Social

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

Archives

  • ►2020
    • ►April
      • Company.
    • ►March
      • Connected.
      • This.
      • Uncertainty.
    • ►February
      • Devotion.
    • ►January
      • TBH.
  • ►2019
    • ►October
      • Cadence.
    • ►July
      • Traps.
    • ►May
      • Plot.
    • ►March
      • Answers.
    • ►February
      • Regret.
    • ►January
      • New Year, New...?
  • ►2018
    • ►December
      • Magic.
    • ►October
      • Fearless.
    • ►September
      • Replication.
      • September.
    • ►June
      • Restoration.
      • Tenancy.
    • ►May
      • Narrow.
      • WOTO.
    • ►April
      • Rattled.
      • Lego.
    • ►March
      • CNN.
      • Just.
      • Unfollow.
    • ►February
      • Zerrissenheit.
      • Malls.
      • Eggshells.
      • Hold.
    • ►January
      • Demonstrate.
      • Brrr.
      • Stella.
      • Hello 2018.
  • ►2017
    • ►December
      • Resentment.
      • Dismissed.
      • Waiting.
    • ►November
      • Artificial Deadlines.
      • Regular.
      • Equal.
      • Knowing.
    • ►October
      • Frequent Finish Lines.
      • Copycats Part Deux.
      • Copycats.
      • Contact High.
      • Intentional Tension.
    • ►September
      • Fanship.
      • Clive.
      • Pause.
    • ►July
      • Millennialmania.
      • Colette.
      • Downsellers.
      • Hood Ornaments.
    • ►June
      • Singular.
      • Half Me.
      • Metaphor.
      • Reins.
    • ►May
      • Itches.
      • Blinders.
      • Free.
      • Chemistry.
      • Content.
    • ►April
      • Left Out.
      • Deference.
      • Triggers.
      • The Ask.
    • ►March
      • Room.
      • Generous.
      • Empathy.
      • Descriptions.
    • ►February
      • Teflon.
      • Code.
      • Force.
      • Moves.
    • ►January
      • Rope.
      • Recovery.
      • Out.
      • Belonging.
      • Small.
  • ►2016
    • ►December
      • Resolutions.
      • Work.
      • Idle.
      • Details.
    • ►November
      • Presentation.
      • Editors.
      • Crazy.
      • Tomorrow.
      • ROR.
    • ►October
      • Joy.
      • Words.
      • Machinery.
      • Face Time.
    • ►September
      • Marriott.
      • Bush.
      • Round and Round
      • Maiden Voyages
    • ►August
      • Destination: Procrastination.
      • Age
      • Inspired Conversations
      • The Ten Minutes.
      • Format
    • ►July
      • Attachments.
      • Who gets your best you.
      • Divided.
      • Performance.
    • ►June
      • For the Originators
      • Chief.
      • The Problem with Passion
      • Platforms.
    • ►May
      • Ordinary.
      • Kenny.
      • Over Everything.
      • See Me
      • Conditions
    • ►April
      • Solving Obvious.
      • Wisdom.
      • Happy Faces.
      • Mr.Sullivan
    • ►March
      • Spirit Animals.
      • The Ensemble Life.
      • Tinkering.
      • Badassery.
    • ►February
      • Adaptation.
      • We Hate It When Our Friends become Successful.
      • Alone in the Field.
      • Portraits.
    • ►January
      • The Process Is The Answer.
      • I Can't Believe Anyone Thinks This Still Works.
      • Rebel Rebel.
      • Commitments. The Fourth Kind.
  • ►2015
    • ►December
      • Unscripted
      • Novelty
      • No Pants.
    • ►November
      • Solve If With What.
      • Dualité.
      • Last Days
      • Whatchyou Sayin?
    • ►October
      • Wanna Get Busy (With Me)?
      • Professionals
    • ►September
      • Fluency
    • ►August
      • The Curse of Customization.
      • Is it that hard to…?
      • Misery.
    • ►July
      • Brave.
      • Blind Spots.
      • Bailing or Believing.
      • The Tension.
    • ►June
      • Nobody Likes The Squirrel.
      • I Just Don't Have Time For Friends.
      • Got A Handle?
    • ►May
      • Earned Wisdom
      • The Whole 'Have It All' Thing. 
      • The Dip vs. The Dive
      • The Power of Disengagement
    • ►March
      • It's good to be loved...
    • ►February
      • Apple – User (and Worker) Friendly
    • ►January
      • The Bird Theory

Search

Instagram

Instagram did not return a 200.

About

SMARTY began as a thriving community in Los Angeles and Boston with weekly panel discussions and events designed to better understand the mindset and growth strategies behind successful entrepreneurs. Today, SMARTY is a weekly blog written by Amy Swift Crosby who chronicles her life as a creative, parent, entrepreneur and spiritual seeker. As an urban refugee living in a New England seaside village, she unpacks topics ranging from uncertainty and doubt to the built environment and advertising. More on Amy.

Never Miss a Post

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

Latest Posts

  • Company.
  • Connected.
  • This.
  • Uncertainty.
  • Devotion.

Copyright 2021 SMARTY.