The Beauty of the One-Word Check-In
I’ve been in several Zoom meetings lately where the host used the one-word check-in to introduce and orient the participants. It’s a combination icebreaker and pre-emptive cut-off of the lengthy intro (because there’s always at least one).
There’s beauty in this brevity.
Postcard writers know all about the beauty of brevity. On our recent Zoom social with The Postcardist, one writer talked about writing really small to pack a lot on one card; others have written one- or two-word messages. My favorite thing about postcards is that they’re complete at any length: one word, one paragraph, one life story.
Give someone your one-word check-in for this moment. It isn’t a story; it’s a snapshot.
Hungry.
Excited.
Grateful.
Terrified.
All of them are valid, and you’ve likely experienced each - maybe within a single day. If you want, tell a little more. What dust got kicked up to reveal this word?
Who you write to is an important choice here. Some folks only want to hear the good news, and you might not be in that spot. Don’t force it. Adam Grant recently wrote in the New York Times about a prominent prevailing feeling: languishing. Not good, not bad. Not hopeful; not not hopeful. Just here.
So be here: good, bad, ugly, otherwise. In this very moment, right here and now, what’s your word? Give us your check-in in the comments below.
