Whoever hides hatred has lying lips,
And whoever spreads slander is a fool.
In the multitude of words sin is not lacking,
But he who restrains his lips is wise.
The tongue of the righteous is choice silver;
The heart of the wicked is worth little.
The lips of the righteous feed many,
But fools die for lack of wisdom.
Proverbs 10:18-21 (NKJV).
Did you know that talking more does not make what you say more valuable?
In the simplest sense, if the demand for you to talk remains the same, but you increase the supply, the relative "cost", based on the "value" of each additional utterance, goes down. If you are stranded in on ocean, what is the value of a single drop of saltwater to you?
In the current era, where perceptions hold so much value, it is counter-intuitive to understand this dynamic. We are to all seek out our 15 minutes of fame, and then find some way to milk that into another 15 minutes, and so on and so forth. We pursue celebrity because of what it affords us, not because of what it means to us, or what it says about us.
Validation, as one example, often comes through spoken word. People will take your words and put them forth as an echo of their own feelings, though your words act as a totem, the means by which their own thoughts can be expressed, and in seeking to express themselves, they also signal validation to the correctness of your own words.
So, if your goal is to get validation from as many as possible, the natural conclusion would then be to express as often and as uniquely as possible, so that you can offer those who are watching a multitude of opportunities to express themselves and bring you validation in return.
The problem is that this is an empty system, it's an exchange of nothing holding tangible value, and yet people's lives are consumed by the dynamic. One cannot be fed from the adoration of another.
It is in this spirit that Solomon then indicates that actions alone are not going to be what differentiates between the wise and the fool, at least within the dimension of verbosity. Fools are not incapable of speaking, in fact they speak so much that what they say has no value. The quantity and quality of speech then cannot be measured like one would gold or silver, more isn't better at all.
If anything, that the more one says, especially if it does not in any way provide benefit to the listener, the more likely that the speaker is simply trying to distract from their own faults and flaws. They speak much so get you fixated on the words they used, or the concepts those words described, that one has no time to really discern if what was said was of value. Who has time to evaluate the last statement made when five more are already on their way?
Do not value based on quantity, because quality when it comes to wisdom is found in the results, not the process. It doesn't take a lot to provide wisdom, though it can require a lot to explain all the details and background behind why what is wise is so.
Take this blog, and the path through Proverbs. Many of these verses have very plain meanings, simple implications, and so instead of trying to add on to that meaning, weaving complex narratives as to the "true meaning", effort is spent trying to explore the meaning already there to the fullest, and then use the backdrop of the world we live in to understand how the words are not dead, but thousands of years on are still as relevant as ever.
That said, and we "know" this, right? That "less is more"? Keep this in mind when interacting with others, provide them first what is useful, and only seek to pontificate further should they be interested in going down that path. Otherwise they'll grow justifiably suspicious as to what you are trying to hide behind your many words.
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