Personal Accountability

How often do you make mistakes at work? How often are those mistakes your fault? If someone calls you out on a mistake, what is your response? These questions need to be reflected upon honestly and deeply.

It should be pretty obvious that we all make mistakes at work. All the way up the ladder in each company, mistakes are made at every level. As a lower and mid-level Manager, you are in the middle of the fray to see how decisions affect people. You will see the results of corporate mistakes, mistakes made by your subordinates, and your own mistakes. So how should each of these be handled?

One company I worked for had recently hired about 50 employees at our location. Three months later, they were laid off due to changing business needs. Less than a month later, we were asking for more temporary employees from our temp partner. It became common knowledge that there was a miscalculation in the upper management of the company that resulted in the needless lay-offs. The people who were laid-off were our friends and coworkers. This mistake made a lasting impact on the way the employees viewed corporate management.

I give this example not to shame that company, but to actually commend them for not trying to cover-up the truth. They didn’t give specifics, but they admitted that calculation mistakes were made that resulted in the situation. This transparency helped to protect against deeper resentment.

No one should ever expect to work for a company that doesn’t make mistakes from time-to-time, and since it is work, by nature, it will affect people, both the customers and the employees, right down to their livelihoods. The standard for assessing the ethical behavior of a company should not be based on its ability to not make mistakes, but their response when mistakes are made.

If you begin to vilify your company, your expectations may become unreasonable. Granted, some companies do regularly make unethical decisions or try to cover up and deny responsibility for certain mistakes. It may be worthy of villain status. So at that point, you’re left with your own employment and personal integrity decisions.

A company may not acknowledge the fact that a decision that was made negatively affects its employees. These decisions may have made sense for profitability or future direction, but decisions that affect employees should be made with work-culture in mind and presented with as much explanation and transparency as is possible for the circumstances.

Another aspect of acknowledging fault is knowing when to take responsibility for mistakes made by your subordinates. While personal culpability may be called for, you may be able to enhance the work culture by standing in fault with your subordinates. Managers have a different perspective on things than their subordinates, so managers cannot expect their subordinates to make the same decisions that they would make given the same situation. This is why there is actually some blame to be had as a manager when your subordinates mess up.

A mistake may have been made due to lack of training or bad directions. As their manager, you are sometimes responsible for these mistakes. Use them as training opportunities and explain the expectation more clearly. Share your perspective on the situation so that the subordinate can better understand the goals in the future with less directions.

A simple example of this would be having a newer employee set up an end display in a store. You give them five different boxes of products to put on the shelves and walk away. When you come back, you notice that the heaviest items are on the top shelf and the slowest-moving item is at chest level. You’re frustrated because you know that heavier items should go low on the shelves, slow-moving items should be on the top, and fast-moving items should be chest level. Easy, right?!

This is where you calm down and think about that employee’s knowledge base. There’s a lot of things they may have never been taught, and they probably don’t know which items sell faster. You are partially responsible for what happened. Your assumption led to this mistake. If you don’t know your subordinate’s work history very well, make sure that you are super clear with your directions until they have more experience and there is more trust built.

It also really helps to explain the “why” of the tasks you’re assigning. “I need these products put on this display. Heavy on the bottom for safety. This next item is the fastest selling, so we want it at chest-level where people see it and can easily grab it. Whenever it’s low, please grab another box and refill it. That other item is slower-selling, so put it on the top so the shelf still looks full.” Clear expectations with “why” training.

There may also be times where taking responsibility for something you didn’t do will help the people around you trust you more and motivate them to work harder with and for you. If it had been a higher manager who pointed out the mistake in the example, taking responsibility for the subordinate’s lack of training will help your relationship with the subordinate and show management that you take ownership of your area. Creating that sense of comradery, the thought and feeling that you, the boss, are in this just the same, will enhance the attitude toward the tasks at hand and give you an advantage when delegating in the future.

Now back to the initial idea: How do you deal with your own mistakes and their results? Anger and frustration are popular choices, and it is not a good idea to suppress your feelings, but where and how do you express them? “At people” is never the correct answer, and if you do this, stop it and seek counseling. If you think you don’t make mistakes, climbing the business ladder will be very difficult for you. No one wants someone working with or for them who will blame everyone else around them for every mistake.

Even if you’re confident that you don’t do this, self-reflection is always needed. Many companies have Unconscious Bias Training where you look at behaviors that might be unwittingly discriminatory. The same contemplation and behavioral reflection needs to be applied to your reactions to disappointments and problem resolution.

Next time something goes wrong at work, stop and take an emotional inventory. How do you feel? What do you want to do? What is the root of the feeling? How often does this happen? What can I do in the future to anticipate and avoid this situation?

You as a manager have a vital role to play in guiding and shaping work culture during times of frustration and discord. Acknowledging one’s mistakes and being humble enough to apologize when something is pointed out is foundational to gaining healthy respect from your subordinates, higher management, and others around you.

Conformity vs. Professionalism

Why does Professionalism matter? People want to feel comfortable at work. Why should they change their style at work? Aren’t we supposed to be accepting of people’s “true self” in the workplace.

Although we will be focusing on these concepts in business and the workplace, they reach much further and deeper into our country’s culture. The common misconception is that societal standards are debilitating and hinder freedom. The fact is that the more laws that are made, the more law-breakers there will be. Certain standards must be held by all the individuals involved in order for freedom to thrive. When individuals stop or refuse to hold certain standards by themselves (without being told through a rule), a law must be created and enforced. This changes the culture and impedes advancement.

For example, corporate credit cards are issued with mountains of paperwork spelling out what can and cannot be done with the card. This is necessary because of abuses in the past. But it wasn’t everyone who abused the cards, it was those lacking the standard of honesty in themselves. This example is very black and white, obvious in its implications. Now apply that concept to the way we dress, the way we speak, the way we drive, the way we live. This is why we feel drowned in legislation and paperwork and why you probably broke fifty laws this week.

We must maintain an individually-driven set of standards as a culture. Having standards instilled at a young age is crucial to ensure the stability of a healthy society. If we encourage children to do whatever they want, the boundaries we know to be healthy and necessary will not be developed. They must be taught to consider the perspectives and feelings of others because interacting with people will always be a part of life. When someone is too easily offended or demands certain actions from strangers, it is a form of selfishness that ignores the perspectives of others, focusing only on the individual’s feelings instead of the whole situation. This leads to more rules and laws for more people to break.

Without the ability to see ourselves as a part of a whole in society, we are led to selfish behaviors and a refusal to be a productive part of society whether this is conscious or unconscious. If societal standards break down, the ability to have a free-market, growing businesses, and healthy workplace culture is killed.

Conformity is the forced alignment to a rigid set of standards enforced by a set of rules. Professionalism is an unspoken, culturally derived set of self-driven standards for how to act in business situations.

There can be some confusion, and we need to be careful not to confuse Professionalism with Conformity. Younger people come into their fields with new ideas and fresh outlooks, and this can be great, if not life-saving, for businesses and business culture. Wise businesses do not ask for conformity, they ask for uniformity and organization, a base standard of professionalism, not a million rules. Your baristas may have 10 different hair colors and the entire spectrum of heights and weights, but they are all expected to be wearing the same clothes, following the same cleaning protocols, and making each drink by a specific recipe. These company standards have to do with quality, branding, and work-culture, but they allow for non-conformity in the space around them. Letting someone come to work in sleep attire, ignore cleaning standards, or make and serve whatever they want is silly. Your business would shut down quickly and you’d invite fines and lawsuits.

Every business is not the same, but every industry has a threshold of standards. The food industry has different standards than the transportation industry, but each is a professional environment. When everyone is able to hold themselves to a certain standard, there do not have to be as many rules because people will do the right thing by their own motivation. This is professionalism at work in the individual. When people do not hold themselves to professional standards, they cause conformity to be forced in the workplace. For example, OSHA was created because some businesses refused to hold themselves to an acceptable, even obvious, standard of workplace safety. This was not all businesses, but we have thousands of rules and laws now because of the refusal of a few individuals to respect and look out for the well-being of those around them.

One of your roles as a manager is to protect the Professional work culture from turning Conformist. You may be tempted to hold yourself to a different standard in the workplace because your role is different, such as not being in the public eye or not working in quite the same environment. Perhaps you don’t feel that you need the same protective equipment because you’re just walking through. While some people can handle this difference and exception-making, it would take everyone being of the same mindset, and when have you ever known ALL the people you work with to be of the same mindset?

Hold yourself to a higher standard. Be cognizant of the effect your actions have on your coworkers. Express yourself within those boundaries, and patiently correct others when they threaten the professional environment. This will help to create and maintain an environment of Professionalism and thus, freedom. It will help prevent turning yourself or others around you into the workplace police. It will avoid the forced hand of Conformity.

Communication – The ABCs

Every Managerial position will have situations arise that force us to decide how much of the information that we possess should be shared with others, either our managers, peers or our subordinates. This is something that happens on a daily basis whether we are aware of it or not, and it is a critical part of our reputation in the workplace. As managers, and as our positions increase in responsibility, we must be more and more aware of how the information we share affects the people and business around us.

So many different aspects bleed into communication, your mood, your knowledge base, your opinion, your professional and personal experience, your religion or spiritual beliefs, your endorphin levels, and the list goes on. Our words tell others what is in our mind and heart. The more careful we are with words, the better chance we have of the most people having a favorable opinion of us. This is not to say we should hide bad news and negative information, but the way we present it will portray our comprehension and tact concerning its communication.

Much of the tone of our communication also stems from our opinion of the person we’re addressing. If we’re talking with the office gossip, we may be more shielded with our words and topics. If we’re talking with a close friend, we may say more than we really should.

As your responsibilities grow, so must your active decision to evaluate the information that you’re sharing with those around you. There are a vast number of topics and situations that arise in business, but all of the decisions you have to make about communication can be boiled down to these ABCs: Appropriate, Beneficial, Consistent.

On a corporate level, you can see these ABCs in the decisions made in all situations. Decisions that are made usually have to travel through different channels and departments answering these questions: Is the change or idea being proposed Appropriate under the law and ethical standards of the company? Does it Benefit the company and/or employees? Is it Consistent with the direction of the company and other decisions that have been made? These questions are a good foundation and framework to be aware of as you formulate your own ideas while navigating corporate mandates, directives, and higher-level interactions.

Whether consciously or unconsciously, we answer these same questions on a smaller scale as we work every day. When we are confronted with a challenge, we develop a solution, and at some point we are, or we should be, distinctly aware of addressing each of these concepts.

Appropriate
We all have a general sense of what is legal and ethical. This is evidenced in the simple fact that our society has laws. We all know that there are right and wrong ways of doing things, and if we’re unsure, we should ask. So when you begin formulating a solution or response to a work situation, you are sending the decision formulation through your internal filter of what you believe falls within legal and ethical boundaries. Or you may consider something that falls outside of those boundaries, in which case your conscience is supposed to inform you that it’s wrong.
The basic questions you may find it helpful to ask are: Is what I’m proposing legally allowed? Can what I want to say be legally disclosed? Has what I’m contemplating been expressly forbidden by upper management or company policy? Is my communication suitable for the work environment?

Beneficial
This is the most familiar of the ABCs, though it can still be tricky to answer. This concept can be seen in every arena of communication in life. These same questions cross our minds when talking to friends and family, doctors, mechanics, law officers, etc. Is the information I’m sharing going to make the situation better or more bearable? Will my sharing this information have an effect on the end result of this situation? Do I want to communicate this for the benefit of others or just because I want to talk about it? Could the information that I want to share change again soon? Does the effect of the information encourage or discourage the hearer? How much will it impact the hearer on an emotional level?
These questions are crucial in maintaining healthy work morale. By being thorough in evaluating the benefits, we can more decisively choose the best time and amount of information to share. Our goal is not to hide bad news, but to always be truthful and not keep our employees guessing. Telling an employee, “Don’t worry about it,” or “Just get it done,” conveys secrecy and objectifies the employee. It leads to a poor work culture and lower productivity. There are times when the beneficial information is, “I don’t know,” or, “I’ll let you know as soon as I can.” These statements communicate truth, openness, and the fact that you’re willing, and even have a desire, to keep the employee updated.

Consistent
This is where emotional control and self-reflection are critical. We sometimes segregate information based on who we’re talking to. It’s understandable when talking to different departments, but if we share something with one subordinate and not another, we may be showing favoritism. Likewise, when similar situations arise, do we handle them based on how we’re feeling that day, or are we handling things consistently? Those whom our decisions affect notice our inconsistencies and this can affect the work environment and morale.
These are some of the questions to ask to evaluate your consistency. Is the information that I share going to be shared the same across all the affected employees? Am I able to treat this situation the same way next time it arises? Is what I’m divulging consistent with what I have divulged in the past? If I share this information, will I be expected to give more information next time? Am I able to deliver on what I say in the future? Will what I say be seen as gossiping? Am I giving everyone the same information?

Your ability to discern whether or not your communication is Appropriate, Beneficial, and Consistent will have a profound effect on how you are perceived by upper-management. The more successful decisions you make by yourself, the more valuable and favorable you become to the people around you. There will surely come times when you need guidance, but navigating those times will be made easier by asking questions grounded in these ABCs.

Communication – Articulation

The ability to successfully communicate ideas may be the single most important aspect of your professional life. If you cannot express to others what you think, what you need them to do, or what is problematic, you will not be able to get things accomplished. Your ability to share ideas and see those ideas come into being in the workplace is completely dependent upon your ability to articulate your thoughts to those around you.

Even managers who are great at their day-to-day job may still be unable to affect the change they want because they do not think things through before seeking the change. If you’re thinking, “I keep telling management that they need to do this a different way,” then you need to examine how you’re approaching the problem. I have known too many people who just state that there’s a problem, or that something should be better. My response is always, “OK, what exactly is the problem?” And it will be written on their faces that they haven’t fully articulated it to themselves or thought through the causes. So we talk it through and find what is specifically bothering them and go from there.

Once you have a firm understanding of the problem and its causes, the next thought you should explore before approaching upper management is: Is my problem worth fixing? This introspection will serve you well in that it is a way of anticipating opposition and questions about your idea. I explained this in more detail in Communication – Face to Face as being able to explain the “Why?” Everyone will appreciate you more if you present a problem with specific information. “I just don’t like it” should never come out of your mouth. You must be able to tell why something needs fixing.

Perhaps the most crucial aspect of the “why?” is how your issue affects those around you. Finding a solution to the problem will be more attractive if you can articulate how it affects others and the workflow. If you are able to show how a problem is hindering efficiency or safety, it will be addressed more quickly. If you can show that fixing the issue will benefit everyone in the office, improving office culture will be a major selling point for addressing the issue.

While being able to articulate a problem is helpful, your career will not be advanced by simply pointing out problems with precision. The very best thing you can do is train yourself to only approach Upper Management with a problem if you have a solution to suggest. On top of that, you will shine even brighter if you can tell them how your solution enables others. It shows that you have thought through how your idea affects others and other departments. It shows an understanding of the deeper business needs. It shows that you are thinking of solutions without getting stuck on the problem. This is the type of forward thinking that Upper Management wants and may reward with promotions or other honors.

Let’s say you have a boss who thinks coffee is gross. You approach them and say, “We need a new coffee maker.” While that may be true, your boss may put that way down on their priority list because the topic doesn’t interest them, and they don’t see the affect that the coffee maker may have on the office. The approach should include information that the hearer may need. “The coffee maker has been broken for about a week now, and I have noticed that we’re creating more garbage from to-go cups that people bring in. Plus, people have been spending time trying to fix the old one. I think it would save time, boost morale, and cut down on waste to get a new one. Can I send you a link to a reasonably priced unit?”

This example is extremely basic, but it illustrates the aspects that should be there. Just stating a problem does nothing for the hearer or the people around you. Offer the problem specifically, show your understanding by listing the effects that the problem is having, list the benefits of a solution, and then suggest a solution. Precise and full articulation gives a better impression of truth and thoughtfulness.
When presenting yourself, it is important to avoid speaking in generalizations or assume that your listener knows exactly what you’re talking about. You will run into confusion and hurt feelings. If there is any doubt in your mind that your hearer knows a problem intimately, ask outright if they are familiar with the subject, and then explain what is necessary to grasp the issue. Be the best communicator in your office. Use language that is specific and shows not only your understanding, but shows your willingness to explain things to others.

Finally, a good habit to practice is listening to yourself when talking. Ask yourself, “How would I respond to me saying this?” The importance of this exercise is trying to gain other perspectives on the information you are presenting. It will help you process your thoughts and improve upon them during the discussion. It also helps to mitigate hurt feelings. Understanding the whole situation is only the gateway to resolution.

The ability to articulate the problem, its causes, and share a solution will be your strongest ally in successful problem resolution in the workplace. And let’s face it, problem resolution is the foundation of all business, so articulation is a truly foundational skill.

Communication – Encouraging Response

We are inundated with words everywhere, and honestly, we tend to ignore much of what’s put before us personally and in the workplace. Most of us have trained our eyes to look for the “important” emails or the “facts that matter.” We have thousands of pages of legal documents that we signed a paper claiming we read, and it seems that the only time we really contemplate our response is when we’re communicating an issue to the boss or the angry customer. I touched on good practices in responding to written communications in my last article. Now, how do we get our communications responded-to? And how do we do this more efficiently, completely, and precisely while keeping out of trouble?

One of the best things we can do throughout our lives is to realize that the people around us are humans just like us. They are all dealing with something. Billionaires have problems too. Fear and anxiety and a lack of time are universal concepts. So to help improve your work environment and make it the best it can be, remember that your frustrations are probably shared by most of the people around you. Choose not to lower your standards of self-expression because of your feelings.

Why am I talking about feelings here in an article about emails and reports? Because all communication flows from our foundational ability to empathize. If you wouldn’t want to get a long, wordy email like the one you just composed, don’t send it. If you don’t want to hear an excuse about something not getting done, then don’t make excuses about your mistakes. This concept is called the Golden Rule for a reason. Treat others as you would like to be treated, and conversely, don’t treat others the way you don’t want to be treated.

Always ask yourself what your reaction would be to your communication. Would you say the email was written properly? Was it concise? Did it address what was needed? Was it opinionated? Did it answer any and all of the questions that were yours to answer? And if you doubt, or have questions about these points, ask someone you respect for help.

I worked with a lady who was a real go-getter. If you wanted something done, she would do it. Operationally, she was always on it. However, when it came to emails, she had a very obvious tendency to glance at, or skim the email and respond. She would only respond to one of several points of the email, or give a response that seemed out of left field. This would slow things down and was incredibly frustrating. It took some time to gently train her to slow down and read things, but this situation really encouraged me to make a better habit of consolidating my emails.

Wherever possible, emails and any other office communication should be short, concise, and use bullet-points. I have found that these three things will encourage a quicker and more precise response from everyone.
1. Bullet Points – They give an immediate visual cue when opening the email. They convey that this email will be well-organized and to the point.
2. Length – Keep things short. The perception of the reader will be that responding will be quick, thus they are encouraged to address your matters quickly.
3. Conciseness – Just spit it out! Spare your reader from sifting through paragraphs looking for what they are being asked or told.
4. Just the Facts – You are not responsible for the emotional reaction of the reader, though you should use discretion with some topics. Don’t over-explain, and don’t try to put your spin on things. Your opinion, even with good intentions, can be seen as manipulative.

These good practices carry-over into many areas. When writing narrative reports, such as those for workplace incidents, though you won’t bullet-point them, they should be concise and void of opinion. Your observation is not an opinion, and your opinion is not an observation. Report writing should seek to minimize the conversation. Give descriptive, non-vague facts so that there will be minimal clarification. When opinion is added, validity is questioned.

The same is true for disciplinary documentation. As a manager, you will have to do this at some point. I’ve only met one person in five companies who liked writing people up. It’s a pain, it’s uncomfortable, and for the vast majority, we only do it because it is necessary for the health of the work environment. We won’t get into that here, but when writing the disciplinary documentation, all opinions should be left out. When you put opinion into these types of reports, you open yourself to criticism, and you might create loopholes for further action. Simply state what you saw, who you saw, what they were doing, what you did, and state the outcome.

This same simple thought process works in so many situations. Thinking this way helps take the emotion out of whatever you’re facing. This is what happened. This is where you are. Now, what will you do about it. No blame, just forward thinking to correct any lingering results of the problem and moving-on. People will respond more readily to this attitude and mindset. Don’t get held-up in the blame if you’re not the one distributing the punishment.

Always seek to be in forward motion. Stream-lining communication helps build that momentum. Be the one that others like responding to by clear, concise, factual communication. Read everything, and you can even respond with the bullet points, showing your comprehension and organization. Be the inspiration around you by respecting others’ time as you would like them to respect yours.

Communication – Written Word

The written word is largely taken for granted in the workplace because it is so common and has become the convenient alternative to vocal communication. Even contracts can be changed and updated. We churn things out to get the job done quickly. It is better not to waste time walking down the hall or half-way across the building for a “yes” or “no” when you can type the question quickly and get a response almost instantly. Office communication is truly streamlined with chat programs and email. It truly does make life easier… until you send that one angry email or accidentally send that one employee’s personal information to the entire office. I have seen these both, and thankfully they weren’t my stories. But the aftermath of both included discipline.

The thing about what you write is that it can’t be taken back. It has been thrust out there, undeniable, and there is usually no chance to explain yourself if something was said wrong. There is no tone of voice or “oh, that sounds wrong when I say it out loud.” This is why whenever communication is made, we should aim for it to be absolutely un-regrettable. We all have a basic understanding of what is appropriate and inappropriate, but when we get too comfortable flipping back and forth from formal to informal, professional to personal, we run the risk of being informal when more professionalism is called for.

Emotion in the workplace is always expected, we’re dealing with humans. And as long as we remember that fact, we can navigate those emotions. I have gotten those emails blaming my shift or department for stuff that was clearly not our fault. I have had emails from other managers claiming their shift did the work that my subordinates had done. My first instinct is to annihilate the offender’s job in front of everyone and spit as they are escorted out, but quite honestly, it may not have been that supervisor’s fault. Their subordinates may have lied and claimed the work with the supervisor being none-the-wiser. How do you address that affront? What needs to be said? Who should you include? These are tough questions that may land you seeking help from your Human Resources staff. The point that I want to drive home here is that you cannot afford to make assumptions and let your emotions dictate your actions.

Don’t worry, I’m not getting sidetracked from written communication. I simply want to show you where your mind should go before you respond in ways that cannot be taken back. I want you to put down the shovel before you even start digging yourself a hole. In the example, the offending manager has already lied. Whether they know it or not doesn’t matter. Their email claim cannot be taken back. If you fire back an email calling them a liar and accusing them, now you’re both in the wrong and your case will be weakened with your superiors. But if you respond with evidence and fact, then you will be vindicated. And before doing anything, ask yourself if it’s really worth the effort. I have written angry email responses, but I have always let them sit for a few hours, then I’ll come back and see what really needs to be said, if anything, in a neutral tone.

There are certainly times to stand up and defend yourself, but the Human Resources and legal departments will tell you, tracking communication is key. Don’t open yourself up to criticism or claims of aggression or wrongdoing. Before any written confrontation, consider the necessity and core of what you are communicating. You cannot take your words back once they are sent.

As a manager, your goal should be to maintain professionalism in all aspects of the workplace. Work documents are never sacred. Everything is open for investigation under certain circumstances. If you want to write a friendly note about work stuff, a personal congrats for a new position or something, great! But set your boundaries between your private and professional communication carefully.

You are in control of what you say and what you send. The great thing about electronic communication is that you have to hit that send button. So make it a habit to pause, reread what you’ve written, and ask yourself if what you’ve written is professional, unbiased and if it will convey the truth.

Communication – Face to Face

Something that helps to get a healthy perspective on professional communication is to realize that personal motivation DOES NOT MATTER. Period. The level of motivated you are and how strongly you feel about something does not matter one bit if you cannot communicate effectively. “But I am passionate about it!” Great, get in line. Being passionate about a perspective can be good for speeches and speaking with friends and family, but in the workplace, social media, and other public arenas, it can be detrimental.

The purpose of professional communication is to convey ideas and come to an understanding with those to whom you are speaking. Much of our conversational communication in professional environments is either discussing a concept that we have not yet come to a full grasp and perspective on, or we are trying to convince someone else that our perspective is the correct one. Talking to others should be welcomed in order to broaden our perspective, and also by doing so, we might be able to gage the waters before introducing an idea.

When trying to get someone else to come to your perspective, keeping your feelings out of it is the best way to continue a discussion and get as close to your desired outcome as possible. Being able to speak and communicate with reasons, evidence, and grounded logic will produce the best outcomes in the workplace. Speaking louder than the other person or name calling doesn’t make you right, it makes your argument appear weaker, and it makes you look ignorant and rude on a personal level.

Face to face communication in the workplace must be maintained as a safe thing to do. If the culture of the workplace discourages speaking with others because of the “personalities” therein, then your company will stagnate and turn-over will increase. It must be safe to speak and share ideas. In order to maintain a safe speaking environment, you must take it upon yourself to be the example of effective communication.

Effective workplace communication has four key elements throughout the conversation. The first element is your readiness to present and discuss you opinion. Any time you are presenting information, your integrity is on display. Have you done your research? Are you presenting your statistics in the way they should be interpreted or manipulating them to better fit your goal? Did you consider as many perspectives as possible when formulating your opinion? Is your proposal relevant and inclusive to the issue at hand? Good managers do research before forming an opinion. Then they add that perspective to their decision making in applicable situations.

This preparation is also where the “Why?” is answered. You must be able to answer the “Why?” before entering into discussions about your idea. We always have someone to answer to. Entry level answers to Management, Management answers to Upper Management, Upper Management answers to the President or CEO who in turn answer to the Stock Holders, and everyone answers to the Law. Imagine that at every level you are being asked why your idea is a good one. If you cannot answer the “Why?” all the way up the chain, then your idea may not be a good one, or your ability to communicate your idea should be reconsidered. This far-reaching preparation doesn’t guarantee a yes, but considering it helps to broaden perspective and consider things from the positions you are working toward. This is the reason that personal motivation and passion do not matter in professional communication. Your feelings are irrelevant to the “Why” in the workplace. Your ability to discuss, persuade, and understand different perspectives in an educated manner will show your passion and drive well enough.

The second element is choosing a time to communicate. Do you just pop-in and surprise your boss with a new idea? I hope not. By surprising someone with a discussion, you are probably diminishing your chances of being thoughtfully listened to and considered. Making someone stop what they’re doing and make them switch gears to what you want to talk about is not only absolutely frustrating, but it demonstrates selfishness on your part. By surprising someone with unplanned and uninvited conversation, it communicates that you think whatever you have to say is more important than what the other person was working on. Obviously there are circumstances that demand attention, but notice how the ones that come to mind tend to be emergency and fact driven, not opinion driven. Your best option to be heard thoroughly is to ask for a scheduled time for discussion. This conveys forethought on your part and respect for your boss and coworkers.

Perhaps the most important part of face to face communication is the third element: Self-presentation. This includes body language, mannerisms, language, and demeanor during the meeting. Did you leave your ego at the door? Is your posture conveying apathy or aggression? Is your speaking tone becoming harsh when the discussion doesn’t go your way? Are you using work-appropriate words in the discussion? Judgement of your proposal begins with how you look. You are further judged when you open your mouth. People will become more open and engaged in a discussion when they feel that they are being listened to, so during discussion, your ability to be polite and patient are critical. There is never an excuse for a raised voice or insult in the workplace. You must be willing to maintain control of your feelings for the duration of any interaction. You may find that you were not as well prepared as you thought, and the emotions of anger and disappointment will bubble-up and make it difficult to maintain composure, but you must accept that answer for the time being.

This brings us to the final element: Feedback. This is the ability to listen and digest other perspectives that may be contrary to yours. Don’t let your anger cloud your ears or damage your chances of trying again later. If your idea is rejected, you must be willing to seek out answers to overcome the opposition. Without truly listening, you will not be able to accomplish this. If there will be further discussion of your idea, then you need to listen to figure out what concepts to rethink or present differently. If things went your way and your idea is implemented, you will still have feedback from others affected by your proposal. Feedback, whether positive, constructive, or negative, should be considered.

We are never too good to improve. Never let yourself have a perspective of having “won” in the workplace. That opens the door to ignorant pride. You had an idea which turned into a proposal which was implemented, and there are others out there with ideas, so just like your manager who listened to you, make sure that you are open to the feedback and ideas of others.

Ideas and improvement are most readily accomplished because of face to face communication. This is part of the reason important meetings are preferred in-person. Your ability to come prepared, be respectful of scheduling, present yourself appropriately, and digest feedback will set the stage for better success in the workplace. Don’t leave your passion at home, but focus it in research in the workplace and action in your personal life. Be prepared to respectfully explain the “Why?” and hopefully you’ll see your passion live in the workplace.

Communication – Introduction

Communication is a broad, every-day, universally used group of concepts, yet it is so important that there are university majors dedicated to its study. The ability to convey ideas across platforms and different mediums effectively and appropriately is a skill that becomes more important as your career advances.

When writing an email, you don’t write the same way that you speak in the break room, or maybe you do, and you are wondering why you’re not being looked at for promotion. On a more technical level, when you speak publicly, you use different words and sentence structure than you would when writing an article or an email. These are just a couple of examples of the practical application of learning better communication skills.

Communication is at the heart of life. Every day, even if we don’t see another human or pick-up a phone, we are still communicating. Communication goes beyond words into thought and action. It starts in the morning when you hit the snooze button. You have just communicated to yourself that you don’t want to get up. The motivation might vary. Maybe you’re tired, you are already stressed, you don’t want the day to start yet. I do it because I don’t want to deal with the dog whining for breakfast at the bedroom door.

In all circumstances, there is a communicator and a hearer. Now I say “hearer” because many people hear but do not listen. This is an unfortunate norm in the western society. When you present a thought in any medium, there is always a hearer. When you speak, when you write, when you sketch on a napkin, there is communication being made, and there are two sides of the expression.

When you hit the snooze button this morning, you communicated to yourself that you didn’t want to get up, and your body and mind listened. When you sketched on the napkin at lunch, you looked at it and considered both its meaning and its worth.

All communication has meaning and worth, even if they are miniscule. You get the weekly email from your Human Resources department about a healthcare perk. You looked at the first few when you got hired, but now they are one of a hundred emails from the last two hours, and you ignore it, delete it, or move it to a folder with the rest of them. Whether you realize it or not, you have just communicated. The email was the communication, and your split second consideration gave the response “I don’t care.” Don’t get me wrong, I’m not vilifying this action. There are a ton of emails that I delete without a second thought. But I’m driving home the point that when we consider this a type of communication, we can better frame response and be cognizant of our actions.

Communication is not just about expression, it is always a conversation. Movies are made to convey a story or get a point across. The masses tell the makers how they feel with box office revenue and the way it affects media and retail. All social media creators put their selves out there for the world to see, though some just post so that the world can pay attention to them. Many do this without considering that they are entering into a conversation where they might not like their conversation partners. They will get trolls and negative feedback and feel insulted, but people are free to leave their feedback just like the creator was free to hit that post button. Many online creators have struggled with handling critical feedback, but this is the potential for putting ideas and self in front of the world. Communication is always two-directional.

In the workplace, you may think you’re just putting information or feelings out there, or “sharing” something, but there is always a response. Even if you can’t see the receiver consider your message or push the delete button, they communicated with your expression. Also, whether you meant to or not, you have communicated peripheral information about yourself. You have communicated what you think is appropriate workplace content and who you think needs to know this information. You have communicated what you believe is important. You have communicated your ability to make decisions about communication, use grammar, and perhaps the depth of your lexicon.

As managers, we want our world of communication to be as small as possible. There is a time and place for public expression, but it is rare and should be considered special. Even newscasters have a script and should keep their opinions out if it. The less we communicate about personal things in the workplace, the better it is for business and office culture. I’m not saying don’t have close friends in the workplace, but over the partition, or at your desk within earshot of others is not the place to have personal conversations. The office doesn’t need to know about the one-nighter you had last weekend. Limiting your personal information in the workplace will help guard against bias, conscious or unconscious. Without personal background, decisions are better driven by merit and professional potential.

Communication is what allows the world to work and thrive. Managers should be the example of effective and appropriate communication in the workplace. Over the next few months, we will look at the differences in communication mediums and what to consider when using them.

Practicality vs. Statistics

Every electronic interaction you have in larger retailers is recorded and used for statistics. There are statistics and studies for everything in retail. While I believe the studies to be largely accurate, I have to wonder if some stores are reaching a point of over-numbering. In larger corporations, there has become a reliance on statistics-driven decision making. People are sitting behind desks looking at reports and studies, and brokering deals with suppliers, then making decisions that affect the stores in their region without knowing the needs and situations of those stores.

Retail managers at the store level have lost much of their ability to control what comes into their stores. I worked in a store up in the mountains, but this store was in the same sales district as stores in the valley. So we would get products that no one would buy, like landscaping wood chips, and it was like pulling teeth to get products that were specific to our store, like tire chains.

While working on the retail front-lines, I would often hear that it was important to keep the shelves looking full. Notice that I say “looking full” and not “stocked.” I was told that research has shown that customer impression is somewhat based on their perception of in-stock. So if a customer goes into a store where there isn’t much on the shelf, even if they can find what they’re looking for, they are more likely to shop someplace else that has more on the shelves. Yes, Shoppers, the big retailers have your habits figured out and know how to squeeze every last penny from you when you enter their stores.

I was told the other day by a grocery clerk that they were told to make sure the shelves were straightened and neat before they could start stocking the shelves. He told me that this directive had come down from the corporate offices and had to be followed. In effect, those corporate managers would rather have products “looking nice” than for there to be more variety of product on the shelf.

While the focus on looking full and neat is a good thing to be sought after, it seems to be statistics-driven and near-sighted. If you step back and take a look, in a time of scarcity and supply chain shortages, the focus should be on getting product to the shelves and keeping the variety available. Priorities should be able to be shifted at the store levels and there should be an emphasis on training the managers to make decisions, not just follow orders. Larger corporations have shown through their actions that they don’t really want people in management who can think. Many have demanded a strict adherence to company directives no matter what accommodations specific stores may need. They want people in management who will follow directions and hold people accountable. If that’s all you aspire for in being “in charge,” then have at it.

Also, I see more and more people at the grocery stores scanning products with their phones because they are shopping for someone else. That hired shopper doesn’t care if the shelves are full and straightened. People are less engaged in “shopping” and tend to be more concerned with whether or not they can get the product they’re looking for.

Trends change, and technology drives much of this change. Statistics are gleaned and analyzed, but their relevance can be short-lived these days. The question is, “How much do you let statistics influence your course of action?” In retail, wanting the shelves to appear full because statistics say that that sells better was letting statistics influence too much. Statistics are only as good as their interpretation, and only last a little while before you need to conduct the same study to keep up with changes.

A good manager will look at a situation practically, make observations, look at statistics, contemplate their relevance, and make a decision. They will act and analyze again, keeping an open mind to change.

Always treat statistics as raw data, not a guide book.

Over-Explaining

Have you ever not quite caught all the words someone said, and when you ask, “What?” they start explaining the entire concept from scratch, trying to break it down because they thought you didn’t understand? All you wanted was a simple repeating of the single sentence they spoke. This simple misunderstanding can cause frustration and wasted time. I know I’ve done this to people, and I’m sure that most managers have.

This behavior is motivated by several factors. The first, and perhaps most innocent, factor is stress. When your brain is going a million miles an hour, and you give someone a direction, you are concerned that you weren’t clear enough because you acknowledge that your thoughts are scattered. So instead of simply repeating the direction, you launch into the thoughts that brought you to asking them to do the task. This indicates a non-present state of mind. Presence of mind is one of the foundational concepts of a healthy mental-emotional state. If you notice yourself talking too much or over-explaining, take a moment, and collect yourself.

Secondly, we are often at the mercy of our experiences. I worked with Autistic children when I was in college. I hadn’t worked with children much, and these interactions shaped part of my expectations for two to five-year-olds. When my nieces and nephews were getting to these ages, I was blown away by their cognition, and my perception of them was inflated because my expectations of their actions were based on children with challenges. It was difficult for me to adapt my thinking to treat them at their level and redefine normal interaction. The same thing happens in the workplace. We can get used to treating someone a certain way and then treating the people around that person the same way. We must be very present and consistent whenever we interact.

If we are not aware as we speak, we create a chance of belittling the intelligence of the listener. I know I can sometimes break things down too much to the point of insult to the listener. I am a teacher at heart and tend to start explanations at square one despite the listener’s experience. A coworker was kind enough to point this out to me one day and expressed that sometimes he felt like I was speaking down to him. It was a wonderful learning moment for me and uncovered an unconscious bias. I apologized and asked that he point it out to me if it ever happens again.

When we speak to anyone in such a way that, by our tone of voice or word choice, we are trying to lower the comprehension level, we are assuming superior intelligence over that person. This can create animosity and avoidance in the workplace. It is a prideful, unconscious bias that says we are the only ones that understand the current situation and therefore must help the simpletons around us come up to our grand mindset and understanding. Of course we don’t really believe that! The truth is though, that people get their impressions of us through how we say things. We may not mean it, but it comes out in our words. It’s not even the words we use most of the time. I’m sure you’ve heard the statistics on this. (If not, let me know.) It’s the way in which we are saying things that communicate our heart.

The way in which we speak to people is the most consistent indicator that our colleagues have to know how we feel about them. When we over-explain, we are communicating that we believe our listener to be under-intelligent. When explaining anything, be straight-forward and concise. Then ask if people have questions, and then only address the issue in the question. If someone says they can’t find the email screen on the printer, don’t start helping them from how to turn it on. If someone asks for step three in the procedure, don’t start at step one.

Give people the respect of listening to their question and answering it. If they ask, “What?” ask them whether they want you to repeat or explain. This helps with clarity, and encourages the other person to be more specific when asking questions. Trust them that they are only asking the questions they need answered.

Be present when speaking, never assume ignorance, control your tone, and trust the intelligence of your listener. This will enhance peoples’ impression of you, and it will help you to have confidence in the people with whom you work.