Maybe we need an ‘Underton’ window, not just an Overton one?

The Overton window, named after US policy analyst Joseph Overton, refers to the range of topics and positions that it is politically acceptable to discuss and hold. It has become popular to use the term beyond the world of politics, to acknowledging the fact that there are some topics and positions that are taboo in a particular context. I am naturally rebellious and when I think of the Overton window, it always makes me want to step outside it. A few years ago, I wrote a LinkedIn post about getting into trouble for not respecting boundaries. I referred to it as ‘being defenestrated through the Overton window’. More recently I have been thinking that just as dangerous as going beyond the range of acceptable topics, is saying things so obvious, mundane and boring that the reader gets bored and loses interest in the content being discussed, possibly even the topic itself, and even the channel being used (such as LinkedIn). I have long moaned about this issue in the context of strategy. Many strategy documents say stuff like “we will be the best” or “we really care about our customers”. These kinds of statement don’t add value because there is no valid alternative, so they contain no real information, and they devalue the discipline of strategy itself. I have also noticed that whenever politicians talk about sensitive topics, like war, health and taxation, they often pepper their messages with statements that are obvious and mean nothing, but are somehow designed to make them seems good to their audience. Like declaring that they don’t like it when citizens die. Or that they really want citizens to be more prosperous. Slightly mixing metaphors and violating surnames, I propose labelling this phenomenon the ‘Underton window’. I sometimes wish it were possible for people to be defenestrated through the Underton window as well as the Overton one. Fined, vilified, ejected for polluting information space with too much meaning-free fluff. In the words of Talking Head’s David Byrne in the song “Psycho Killer”: “When I have nothing to say, my lips are sealed.” I hope you didn't find this post fit into your Underton window. #unthink #unask #unlearn #communication