Being the Boss

I think everyone likes being in charge of something. Maybe it's a small thing like deciding what movie to see over the coming weekend. Perhaps it is something complex like the office Christmas party. Or it could be supervising an entire staff of professionals. These examples and most any I could name that involve being in-charge come with a bag full of challenges, any number of which could easily undermine any aurora of authority one might have or wish to have. While being the boss may have its perks, the fact is it is a non-stop "tricky wicket" that requires focus, patience, vision, and  a recognition that bosses are as expendable as any one.

Despite that, I was not surprised in my developing effective business skills class recently when I asked students what their dream job is. The great majority of the class said they wanted to the boss. "Of an office, a project, an entire organization?" I asked. "Yes!" was their collective answer. In other words, their dreams are clearly focused on being the number one person is some aspect of their professional lives. I completely understand that. In my career, my level of supervisory authority has ranged from being able to decide when I could have lunch to directing dozens of people. Each had their own set of challenges. Still, I enjoyed it.

Communication is a vital aspect of any supervisory job. If one does not do that very well, then their ability to motivate others to work their hardest in all likelihood will be compromised. With the possible exception of the military, one would be hard-pressed to find supervisors who did little else with their employees than boss them around. That style of management, generally, is rarely practiced. Instead, supervisors need to connect more with their workers and demonstrate sincere interest In the welfare of those who report to them. This is not necessarily a bad thing. However, it does require any perspective boss to be effective at sending and receiving messages.

Listening Revisited

In our world, there are many topics that deserve attention. The importance of having a spare umbrella on-hand, why we should chew with our mouth closed, and the benefit that seeing a good western from time to time brings to the lives of all movie goers are just a few examples of this. But one topic deserving multiple visits, discussion and analysis is listening. While it is an act of communication that all of us, according to researchers, spend over half our days doing, it remains an over-looked part of the communication process. Generally, most folks - myself included - do not give it nearly as much attention as we should.

This is too bad. Perhaps this is because we all take listening for granted. Perhaps because we all do it - or believe we do - it is viewed as not being much of a big deal. Or perhaps because when it comes to communication, the spotlight is usually on the sending part of a message rather than the receiving. After all, how well people speak and how effective they are in articulating information or a message is simply more fun. It is not unlike analyzing a football game. It is much more enjoyable to focus on the quarterback then it is the right guard even though that offensive lineman is critical to the success of any play.

The fact is how well one listens is what ultimately determines the success of an act of communication. It is important to note here that by listening, I mean far more than simply hearing words or sounds. That is a physical act. What I refer to is how well we comprehend what we have heard. Effective listening calls for intellectual commitment and focus. Simple hearing does not. Listening requires an effort to process what has been heard, including placing it in some sort of context with other messages and/or information one has picked up. Without question, we all need to give listening its due. It is far too important not to.

Being Agents of Collaboration

Mutual back scratching is one of those rare things that actually is as good as it sounds. Taken literally, it refers to my offering to scratch a person's back if they, in turn, agree to scratch my back.. Though one person may be a better back-scratcher than another, such a collaboration generally is a win-win for all concerned. In a more broad sense, this speaks to the essence of cooperation, two people working together for the purpose of getting their needs met. Assuming each party carries out their part of the agreement, mutual back scratching helps reduce the possibility of conflict, lowers levels of tension, and paves the way for steady progress for many rather than a few.

Such a joint act speaks to the inclination individuals have to serve their self interest while also addressing their fundamental need to connect with others. As sociologist Edward O. Wilson once wrote: it reconciles that part of us that favors individual selection with another part that leans toward group selection. For communicators, the challenge comes with devising messages that assure prospective collaborators of the benefits that await should they agree to work together. For couples, the benefit is joint happiness and fufullment. For business, the benefit is profit. For nations, the benefit is peace.

A slang expression of such a dynamic is "tit for tat;" another with a more negative connotation is "eye for an eye." In today's world, a good deal of antagonism seems to exist where few seem to be trying to work with others or build on what they all might have in common. Whether it is in politics, international relations, marriages or economics, that kind of joining goes a long way toward achieving wide spread harmony. Who among us would not like to see that? So, communicators have their work cut out for them. Promote mutual back scratching. Open the minds and hearts of all to the joy of practicing collaboration.

Communication in 2030

One thing about the future that people never seem to tire of is making predictions about it. Recently, the U.S. Intelligence Council projected that the world's world population will increase over the next 15 years from its current total of 7.1 billion to over 8.3 billion. Putting aside the reality of this being a significant jump,  the question is: what will such a dramatic change mean? How will the reality of a greater world population affect our planet? According to the IC, the increase will unleash a series of dilemmas that will be nothing less than "game changers." 

An increasing number of border issues, a strain on the world's food and water supply, an inprecidented demand for the construction of new housing and transportation services, and a threat to the living standards of older nations will be in all likelihood what happens by or around 2030. By themselves and collectively, the predictions touch all key aspects of life, including economics, politics, life styles, and relationships ranging between individuals and nations. How will these shifts affect how we communicate? In raising such a question, I am not so much concerned about the tools that will be used or the channels folks that will tap into to help facilitate their interactions. Rather, my concern revolves around the quality.

With more people in the world and the added strain on life styles and food supply, for example, will there be more tension in the communicating that occurs between people? Will there will be less trust or openness? Will people be less inclined to share personal information and, conversely, be more apt to have their own agendas instead of pursuing relationships of mutuality? I raise these questions - negative in tone - because given what the IC is predicting, I am not optimistic about the future state of communication. Tension does not always bring out the best in how well people communicate. Perhaps we should begin learning how to communicate more effectively during times of stress.

A Farewell to Cursive

"Nothing lasts forever" is an old expression that, ironically, may end up being one of the few things that actually does never reach an end-date. Its meaning, of course, is straight- forward enough. Also, I suspect it is true though there remains a number of aspects of life that very much seem to be forever ongoing. (I am looking at you "chicken noodle soup," "jump rope," and the board game "Candyland." Also, let us not forget singing in the shower.) Otherwise, what exists here on our planet appears to do so with an expiration date even if that piece of information may not be known or visible to the naked eye.

There seem to be signs that cursive, the style of longhand writing that, according to historians, has existed for over 700 years, may be on its way toward the exit door of life. I make this observation in reaction to conversations I had recently with several college educators. These scholars relayed their own experiences with students who said they did not know how to read or interpret handwritten notes to them. I suggested that perhaps this was because the notes were written in sloppy penmanship. This, they assured me, was not the case. Simply, the students were unable to read words put forth via handwriting.

As disturbing as this might be, upon reflection the emergence of such a reality is not surprising. More and more young generations are not exposed to this form of communication. What they read or words  they see are usually written in print such as on computer screens, in books or magazines, or signs such as posters or billboards. In addition, less and less, it seems, all of us are called upon to actually handwrite notes to others. Thanks to advances in technology, nowadays we simply text or email each other. I will let others decide whether this trend is good or bad. As for me, I view the departure of cursive with unmistakeable sadness.

Due Diligence

Author Jules Verne once described science as being a series of mistakes that eventually leads to the truth. Communication, I believe, can be characterized similarily. In the efforts of scientists, their work is comprised of conducting experiments to resolve a puzzle or pinpoint the answer to a dilemma of some sort. The drive to identify a cure for cancer is a good example. It has been going on for years and while no single cure in, say, the form of a magic pill has been found, progress has been made. The experiments represent the steps toward the ultimate answer. Pain-staking trial and error. Stops and starts. Final stop: the truth.

Sustained, effective communication is not dissimilar. Two people come together. Perhaps they are co-workers who have been assigned by a boss to collaborate on a project. Or maybe they are on a first date and are striving to find common ground to make their time together pleasant. Or maybe an entrepreneur is seeking to connect with a targeted segment of the population to sell his or her product.  In all three cases, testing out various strategies is likely to occur before "the truth" is identified. For co-workers, mistakes occur in their brainstorming to come up with a workable gameplan. Individuals ask each other questions. Entrepreneurs initiate test marketing.

The point here is that rarely, if ever, does successful communication occur without a stretch of false starts. People test the waters. They probe. They even, at times, step outside their comfort zone in order to eventually attain the desired result: connection. It takes time, can be frustrating, and requires non-stop nurturing. If you are thinking that is a lot of work, then go to the head of the class. Science is hard and so, too, is effective communication. The pay-off, of course, is immensely satisfying for those involved and even others indirectly. But one should never think they can communicate effectively without due diligence.

Communication in the Business World

The world is filled with thousands and thousands of businesses. Big ones. Little ones. Local ones. Multi-national ones. Successful ones. And others that struggle. Collectively, they represent mankind's attempt to survive, engage and even provide each other with the opportunity to build lives of value and worth. They are everywhere and provide the world with a special of energy that otherwise would not exist. Bottom line: each is a good thing even if there are those that do not do or perpetuate good things. Finally, one common denominator each shares is that at some point in their evolution, they are the product of one person's dream or vision.

For any person's dream of a business to have become a reality, they had to be able to communicate or share it successfully with others. Without question, businesses are built on hard work and sacrifice. Also, they are the direct result of effective communication. If someone has a dream of creating a pizza shop that delivers pizzas to the homes or offices of customers, for example, then at some point they needed to successfully impart their vision with persons to loan the, start-up money, persons from which to acquire space from which to operate, persons to buy pizza-making equipment, and persons to service as workers to carry out the business.

If that dreamer is unable to communicate their vision with others, then their dream, no matter how creative or inspirational, will not happen. Communication is a necessary component. Further, communication is vital for that dreamer to be able to sustain and grow their business. All this, I believe, is worth mentioning because rarely is the role of effective communication acknowledged as well as it should be in discussions of entrepreneurship and enterprise. Communication is a necessary ingredient in the unique world of business. Hard workers - entrepreneurs - among other things have to communicate well.