Tips & Lessons for 2022: the communication fools

[Loïs Bégué]

In extension of the Three Cs of Communication by @Rose Eliff , which  focus on the "sender" role..

The "Receiver" role in a communication process is at least as important as the "Sender" role. Hence...

Tip:

Whether in an email, voicemail or on conference call, when communicating with others remember:

Listen/Read
Comprehend
Take your time

Nowadays, people do not listen to understand, to learn, to just be informed etc.
They listen to answer, to react, to oppose, to argue etc.

They aren't what they is! (*)
They are what they do!

And that's bad!

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(*) you are what you is (https://genius.com/Frank-zappa-you-are-what-you-is-lyrics)

[Samie Kaufman - Your Gal at Gliffy]

There have definitely been times where I've rushed to get an email off my to-do list and missed some data or opportunities along the way, so I really appreciate the reminder to read to comprehend.

I do think there's a bit of a balance, though. As someone who has been professionally ghosted a few times and has deadlines that hinge on an approval or answer, I want people to have time to listen and craft a thoughtful response. But I also am looking for a response in a business day or two.

I totally acknowledge that we don't always have time for that.

If someone sends me a long email that requires that I do some digging and take my time with it, I always try to send a quick response like "Thank you so much for putting all this together. I have a few things I need to focus on before I can dig in — is it okay if I get back to you by [DAY]?"

It's also really helpful when someone explains the reason for any urgency. "I wanted to make sure we could investigate this before our next meeting with the CEO" or explains a lack of urgency, like "nothing on fire — but I'd love to have this in our reporting next month." so that I can better manage my time as an email receiver. :) 

[Christine P. Dela Rosa]

Yes I think we're conditioned right now to just power through and get work done. Productivity equals checking things off a list. But to your point, @Loïs Bégué , if we just take a breath and first seek to understand what we're receiving, we might engage in a different way.

[Loïs Bégué]

Yep ;-)

[Taranjeet Singh]

Thanks for sharing this tip, @Loïs Bégué !

[Vero Rivas]

Hi @Loïs Bégué 

   Thank you very much for sharing and another thing that we must always, always, always keep in mind that when we read an email we do not know with the intensity or the emotion that it has been written, therefore we must try to read it objectively without inserting our own emotions to avoid bad blood

Cheers