Some advice sounds impressive but changes nothing. This article shows how to move beyond “fortune cookie wisdom.”
This article is part of our Being Human Series — reflections on empathy, values, and how we are experienced by others at work.
“Action isn’t just the effect of motivation; it’s also the cause of it.” — Mark Manson
Inspiration matters — it may be the spark people need. But people also need something they can do.
If your talk, message, or meeting is so vague that it doesn’t give people a clear way to act, it doesn’t help them.
And as Mark Manson reminds us, the very act of doing is itself a source of motivation.
Fortune Cookie Wisdom Isn’t All That Useful
As a kid growing up in Southern California, whenever we went out for Chinese food, the meal always ended with a pot of tea and fortune cookies.
And if I got a really good fortune, I’d fold that little slip of paper and tuck it away as a good-luck charm.
The fortunes promised riches, love, or success — but aside from a lucky number or color to wear, there wasn’t much advice about what I could actually do.
Thinking back now, I realize that while those fortunes were fun, they weren’t very useful.
Later on, I began to notice that the same kind of good-sounding, vague, and not very actionable advice shows up in professional life too.
I began to think of this as Fortune Cookie Wisdom: ideas that sound impressive, but don’t actually help anyone decide what to do next.
Fortune Cookie Wisdom at the CX Conference
I was moderating a CX panel at a conference when one panelist grabbed the mic and unleashed every buzzword in the lexicon.
Purpose, EX = CX, journey-centric, the peak-end rule — you name it, he said it.
And it all sounded rather grand.
But with a trainer’s ear, you could tell that the audience learned absolutely nothing. That’s because he was sharing Fortune Cookie Wisdom.
All those pretty words floated 5,000 feet in the air — with no practical advice on how to bring them down to earth and do something with them.
From Buzzwords to Behavior
The problem with Fortune Cookie Wisdom is that it sounds good but doesn’t tell you what to do next.
Take a quality coaching session as an example.
It’s easy to say to a Customer Service Agent, “You need to speak from the heart.”
But what does that actually mean?
To make it useful, you’d get more specific.
You might play back a call, demonstrate tone, language, or phrasing — model what “speaking from the heart” sounds like in practice.
The same goes for advice like “walk in the Customer’s shoes.”
It sounds lovely.
But it only becomes meaningful when you help them translate it into specific actions: what to listen for, what questions to ask, what words to use, how to acknowledge what the Customer is feeling.
This isn’t about judging anyone who speaks in generalities — we’ve all done it.
It’s about recognizing that helping someone act takes more clarity than simply sounding wise.
So by all means inspire people — just make sure you also show them what they can do next.
Related reading: How Team Leaders Can Talk Like a Leader
Thank You for Reading
I regularly share stories, strategies, and insights from our work across Contact Centers, Customer Service, and Customer Experience. If this resonates, I’d love to stay connected.
You can drop me a line anytime, or subscribe via our website.
Daniel Ord
[email protected]
www.omnitouchinternational.com
