Saying Too Little Too Often

Most modern communication platforms (Email, SMS, IM, collaboration tools like Slack, Chatter, etc) have dramatically altered how we communicate in the workplace. Since they are easy to use, “free” in that they are often paid for by employers, and readily available, people often use (abuse?) them to discuss things that wouldn’t be worth the effort prior to their creation. If you had to set up a conference call or write a letter to do so, just how likely would you be to send a coworker a “test” to determine what Game of Thrones character he/she is? This ease of communication leads to a tremendous increase in the number of missives we send, which leads to a doubling down. Due to our inbox backlogs we are all encouraged to communicate as directly and efficiently as possible – to “get to the point” – only to need to send more notes to discuss the items left out of the previous missives. Essentially it means we say less, but far more often. Where once 140 characters was a way to describe the folks working in the average workplace it is now often the limit to which we are willing to communicate within it

All of this can have a deleterious effect on an organization’s culture, which is created in part by the communication shared among its people and it is vital that leaders choose words and convey messages with great care. If you work long enough your companies will have good stretches and bad stretches. Whether your speech is celebrating goals exceeded, your presentation meant to inspire a stalling division, or your memo is typed with uncertain hands hoping to provide comfort in difficult spells your words will define that moment in time. Certainly there are occasions when a meme alone says everything worth saying, but brevity should not always be sought for its own sake - only if it is appropriate for the circumstances. Remember that each email, text, or IM is an ask of someone’s time and once given that recipient wants the best of what you have to say, not the least of it.

I encourage everyone to treat their written communications with care and remember that the meaning interpreted by the reader is far more important than the meaning intended by the sender. Like many erosions, the lack of attention given to business prose is not noticed until an entire landscape has changed and the things we care about (morale and trust among them) are falling because of it. While they are not always mutually exclusive, how do you weigh efficiency against thoughtfulness in your business communications? Have you ever wished your leadership communicated more or are you already drowning in pointless messages?