It seems appropriate, as we remember and honor our presidents in this month of February, to introduce the topic of "communication" with a comment made by that really great communicator, Abraham Lincoln: "He can compress the most words into the smallest idea of any man I ever met." "Communication" means many things, and can be attempted in many ways, but in essence it's just an effort to convey information or an idea so that it is understood. And never in all the milleniums that have preceded our present time have there been so many tools available to

accomplish that objective. Spoken, written, typed, printed, recorded, faxed, telephoned, e-mailed- information is exchanged through media undreamed of not all that long ago. Ignoring other means of communication (painting, dance, music, and other art forms), we're going to concentrate on oral and written communications in their various forms. How can we improve our methods so we can convey messages with more clarity and effectiveness How can we manage and control the information we do receive? How can we prevent information overload?

Perhaps that's asking a bit too much. But don't we all reach the point once in a while when we wish that everyone would just shut up? The phones wouldn't ring, the mail wouldn't be delivered, the answering machine would have no messages, the fax would be silent, and e-mail would still be a gleam in some electronic wizard's eye. Short of going on vacation to a deserted island, however, that's not likely to happen. And even if it did, of course, we'd soon feel the need to reach out and talk to someone, to know what's going on within the organization, to learn what the competition is doing, to read the latest NOW! newsletter-to communicate. Why is it, then, that we don't give a warmer welcome to the various communications that fill our lives every day? Maybe it's because we're not doing it right! We're sending and receiving information like crazy-but are we really communicating? Are our messages clear, direct, and to the point? Are we telling everything that needs to be known in order to accomplish what we want? Are we telling too much Are we receiving too much?

Football players communicate with each other when "sending" and "receiving" the ball. The quarterback does his best to deliver the ball directly to the receiver; the receiver tries to decipher the sender's intentions and to catch the ball. If he catches it, it's up to him to run with it-using the most direct route possible, avoiding interference, and covering as much ground as possible. And all the time he hopes he won't drop the ball. A simplistic comparison? Of course. But let's pursue it a bit further and see where we wind up.

If the throw is good and true and no outside interference disrupts it, the pass is complete. But if the sender drops the ball, the would-be receiver doesn't have a chance. Many of us drop the ball when it comes to communicating. Regardless of whether it's in direct conversation, a telephone call, a fax ,whatever, we often fumble and wind up miscommunicating. This can happen for many reasons, but the most common is insufficient or confusing information (our signals aren't clear). Time is wasted while we make another attempt to reach our goal, whatever it may be. O.K., we wind up here, metaphored out.

Do you need information? Explain exactly what you need when you ask for it. Perhaps if the receiver knew why you need to know, she would better understand what you need. And if you don't make it clear as to when you need it, there's no certainty of getting it on time. ( Don't wait until the last minute and then expect instant answers.) If you're delegating work, be precise about what needs to be done. Conversely, if someone is unclear when asking you for information or delegating work to you, keep questioning until you understand exactly what is wanted.