Post MBA - what's changed
15 years ago
Sunday, March 29, 2009
"Stop By" or Stop My Heart?
The Internet has enabled corporations to stay connected and keep their culture of “togetherness.” While there are many benefits to staying connected via the Internet there are pitfalls. My experiences have shown me how difficult it is to understand the emotion behind electronic communication. Often it’s the delivery that determines the meaning of the words and not the other way around. By limiting communication to electronic forms, we run the risk of significant misunderstanding. I remember at my last job my boss would frequently send me emails with the subject line of “Stop by” with nothing in the body of the email. My natural reaction was in line with human nature and to think the worst and panic. What did I do???? Did I mess something up??? How much trouble am I in??? I would walk into her office and 9 times out of 10 she just wanted to talk about how things were going. Had she only walked over to talk, many minor heart attacks could have been avoided.
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This is an interesting post and definitely something to think about as electronic communications become the norm. I think part if the issue you discuss stems from our continuously more connected culture. We've come to expect faster, broader, flashier networks and enjoy the ease of new communication forms like email and txt.
ReplyDeleteLike most traditional communications, however, one must take time to understand how best to use each new medium. We are so used to the simplicity and instant gratification of electronic communications that we forget to stop and think about what is the best way to convey our message. You might be surprised at how much can be accomplished without excessive electronic blasts.
Apart from the tone of a sender's internet 'voice', the depth of understanding messages definitely pose problems as well.
ReplyDeleteMy boss at my pre-MBA job arrived work late noon most times. However, she made it a habit to send e-mails in the morning to prioritize client projects for the day with brief directions.
Though her directions were brief, God helped me if I didn't figure out the 'unspoken' part of her messages!!!
I had fallen victim of this circumstance twice before of course learning to make some critical decisions myself when she was inaccessible(typically 70% of the time)!!