Lifehack: "Untold hours of productivity are lost every month due to simple misunderstandings and communication breakdowns. For some reason, many people seem to have a tough time organizing their thoughts and communicating their desires to their co-workers and employees.
I’m constantly amazed at the number of people who seem to have forgotten the basics of composing a written thought. Even some college grads have no grasp on how to speak/write in a way that moves a project forward.
9 comments:
I believe that this is a very important article that should be read, especially in this age. There are indeed frequent communication breakdowns, something that is catastrophic in any business, and theatre is in no way an exception. For any communication breakdown, there is a huge issue within a show process. It is so important for people to know how to effectively communicate, especially since so much of the communication is done through emails and production notes. Many people struggle with constructive criticism verbally, and this struggle is no different in written form. Writing a clear, concise, and constructive comment is something that everyone should know before entering the theatre and any other industry.
My best tool when composing email is to always read it out loud before pressing send. Sometimes when someone in my house is composing an email to an employer or teacher they'll read it aloud to whoever is in the living room for consistency and readability before pressing send. The other trick is that if it still sounds too confusing, just pick up the phone and call.
I feel that the skills listed in this article are basic skills of communication that everyone in every field needs to operate effectively. Maybe I knew it internally, but I guess the "light bulb" moment I had here was the correlation between clarity in communication and efficiency in execution.
One of the other things I've been learning to do more and more lately is create actionable comments and assign tasks. The article points out that if you can give clear instructions to a specific individual/group on what to do and how to get back to you on it, productivity will increase when people aren't trying to figure out whose responsibility something is.
Then again, you've got to be careful. No one likes an office dictator, right?
this article seems to be a useful guide to optimizing work place efficiency. the five simple steps outline important ideas in a simple way which is befitting of the first rule itself. the idea that problems can arise from simple misunderstandings is often overlooked, and can be a considerable waste of time. the written record contributes to this, and limits time wasted trying to remember things. the rules themselves are simplistic, and useful in avenues far beyond theater.
I am glad this article made it to the blog this week, and I agree with a lot of what other people have said. I found that a lot of the tips mentioned are applicable in our "academic" setting: the idea of making instructions specific and user-friendly to allow more work to get done and know who is doing it, which leads to knowing exactly when that work gets done and timestamping it. I have found that since that one faithful day I decided to start dating all my notes (and giving them page numbers), I have probably amassed quite a bit of saved time by not having to leaf endlessly for "what we learned the other day" and instead flipping right to it. Making my notes clear and concise means I can lend them to a friend who missed class, and easily convert them to flashcards to study.
This is an excellent reminder of the basics. It is also nice because it goes beyond common sense. I think the most important rule is to make every comment actionable. It will keep people on task and moving forward. It also avoids well I thought Bill was doing that.
All of these rules just make your interactions more professional. I think we are becoming too casual in our business. I am not sure if this is just how a younger generation works or if they are tired of the formalities that they feel do not serve any purpose.
The other step that when communication does breaks down, some one needs to take action to break fix it. That is another step that the top of the food chain is responsible for.
Here's what I like to consider about clear communication: I normally don't have time to read lengthy e-mails packed with metaphors and emoticons. Also, if I receive an excessively long e-mail, I feel obliged to write back with a similar length, and again, I don't have time for that. Therefore, if I, a first year college student, don't have time to read e-mails of this nature, then neither do my teachers or employers. I take this thought into every e-mail I send, even one's that I send to my grandmother. An e-mail is not my next word counted essay; I'm not required to hit a length that with numb the reader's eyes. Clarity, communication, and consideration.
I love this article, and I plan on saving it in case I get a lobotomy and can't remember my three C's.
A lot of other have commented on this, but here's my take: my experience is consistent with this article in that the shorter and more concise the emails that I send are, particularly when writing busy people, the more likely I am to get a response. When trying to schedule meetings, I always suggest specific time periods when I am free regardless of how flexible I am.
One thing that is interesting is how people don't make use of specific email subject lines; they'll often right general things like 'today' or 'checking in,' whereas beginning an emails subject with its topic and then following with a concise summary, e.g., 'Rube Goldberg: Plans to meet Tuesday.'
And I never delete any email...
I feel like this is something Joe Pino would tell us in metta skills. I bookmarked the list of words that people confuse. I agree with Elize about reading things out loud or letting someone else read their professionals emails. My friends constantly ask for people to proof read their emails. I agree with Cody that this goes past common sense and again the most useable thing i got from this article is the comments about making every comment actionable, as well as, making every criticism specific and constructive.
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