Communication is Key

Keep people in-the-loop

Don’t assume people will figure out what you are trying to do and how you intend to do it.

TALK to your people! Or email them. Or text them. Or give them an update in Slack. Give everyone a big-picture idea of what is going on, even for things outside their immediate responsibilities.

If people don’t get effective communication, they mentally fill in the gaps. And human nature usually fills in those communication gaps with the worst possible reasons. For example, if I text my teenager “Where are you? It’s getting late.” and they don’t respond, my brain starts filling in “lying in a ditch somewhere” options.

It happens in the corporate world, too. If the boss starts having strangers in suits interview coworkers, rumors about layouts or mergers will start to circulate. However, if everyone on the team knows that an outside contractor is coming in to facilitate our new strategic plan, there is no “OMG—what’s happening? Am I going to get fired?” stress.

Keep your people in the loop. Communication is key.

(Photo by Florian Berger on Unsplash)