December 2008 Archives
Maybe it's the pressure of this time of the year - end of semester, a shortened work month, the rush for Holiday preparation - or maybe it's that everyone is running full speed all the time, but there certainly have been a lot of angry notes and email recently. Some days working through my inbox it seems like I've been dropped into a den of hungry dogs, after having a gallon of beef gravy poured over me. I bet you feel the same.
Email is a lousy communications tool. It lacks any sense of emotion so of course we project our own on to it and never stop to consider we might just be wrong. There are always two filters at work. One is the author's and one is the reader's, and often they are not synch'd.
The next time you're upset by something you received, or something you heard in a meeting, rather than react quickly, why not talk to the other person, and ask in a neutral fashion for more understanding. It can go a long way toward reducing conflict and building better relations.
Email is a lousy communications tool. It lacks any sense of emotion so of course we project our own on to it and never stop to consider we might just be wrong. There are always two filters at work. One is the author's and one is the reader's, and often they are not synch'd.
The next time you're upset by something you received, or something you heard in a meeting, rather than react quickly, why not talk to the other person, and ask in a neutral fashion for more understanding. It can go a long way toward reducing conflict and building better relations.
