Over-Communicate Much?
Ticking through Lynn Gaertner-Johnston's list of quations, I came to the conclusion that I definitely am an over-communicator. This new awareness feels the same as when I came to understand that I'm not an emotional eater per se, but that I binge-eat. [I also binge-watch and now, embarrassingly, it has been theoretically proven that I also binge-mail.]
My staff must surely hate seeing my name in their inboxes by now! Shame. I thought I was being clear, concise & helpful by keeping them in the loop & teaching them what I know as I go along; and also staying on top of deadlines as expected by those at the top. All the while I was just interrupting their days by lobbing more electronic sludge at them to dredge through.
In case you are wondering, it is not at all difficult to grasp why I started doing it. The first lesson I recall picking up from my office mentor was to change my thought process into one which is constantly & automatically focused on finding a solution, whatever situation might come up. Today, although I cannot always silence the internal panic when faced with sudden changes/complications, I find it almost automotive to immediately start thinking of possible solutions whenever I come across something new to deal with. This personal strength (as I'd like to think of it), combined with my educational background in auditing, also means that I tend to foresee problems (such as process delays/human errors) by default. I've been pre-programmed; and this leads to over-communication in the sense that I have become absolutely disinclined towards sitting back, letting go & trusting others to get the job done or thinking a bit more for themselves before I interfere.
Luckily, these OPSA Newsletter Tips sound like they might actually help to avoid binge-mailing in future:
1. When 'cc'd, you aren't obliged to reply unless critical to do so.
2. Don't insist on being 'cc'd unless truly necessary.
3. Do not send reminders for deadlines in advance (rather set your deadline a little earlier than necessary).
4. E-mail is not the right way to start/continue a business discussion.
5. You don't always have to have the last word (eg. 'Thank You').
6. Don't elaborate if you aren't asked to.
7. Send notices at the right time (if it's not important now, they won't read it now).
Are there any other guidelines you stick to that might also redirect me onto the reserved path?
P.S. The basic rule 'think before you speak' also applies to relationships. Seriously! There's this song about it and everything (which was subsequently covered by Alison Krauss & Ronan Keating too):
My staff must surely hate seeing my name in their inboxes by now! Shame. I thought I was being clear, concise & helpful by keeping them in the loop & teaching them what I know as I go along; and also staying on top of deadlines as expected by those at the top. All the while I was just interrupting their days by lobbing more electronic sludge at them to dredge through.
In case you are wondering, it is not at all difficult to grasp why I started doing it. The first lesson I recall picking up from my office mentor was to change my thought process into one which is constantly & automatically focused on finding a solution, whatever situation might come up. Today, although I cannot always silence the internal panic when faced with sudden changes/complications, I find it almost automotive to immediately start thinking of possible solutions whenever I come across something new to deal with. This personal strength (as I'd like to think of it), combined with my educational background in auditing, also means that I tend to foresee problems (such as process delays/human errors) by default. I've been pre-programmed; and this leads to over-communication in the sense that I have become absolutely disinclined towards sitting back, letting go & trusting others to get the job done or thinking a bit more for themselves before I interfere.
Luckily, these OPSA Newsletter Tips sound like they might actually help to avoid binge-mailing in future:
1. When 'cc'd, you aren't obliged to reply unless critical to do so.
2. Don't insist on being 'cc'd unless truly necessary.
3. Do not send reminders for deadlines in advance (rather set your deadline a little earlier than necessary).
4. E-mail is not the right way to start/continue a business discussion.
5. You don't always have to have the last word (eg. 'Thank You').
6. Don't elaborate if you aren't asked to.
7. Send notices at the right time (if it's not important now, they won't read it now).
Are there any other guidelines you stick to that might also redirect me onto the reserved path?
P.S. The basic rule 'think before you speak' also applies to relationships. Seriously! There's this song about it and everything (which was subsequently covered by Alison Krauss & Ronan Keating too):
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