Communicating in the Office: Do’s and Don’ts
When does communicating become over communicating? In our business, we tend to err on the side of sharing information, but how do you decide what to, and not to, share at work.
It’s a fine line. Here, at Double Forte we share a lot!
“Team, don’t forget I’m out for a dentist appointment next week; I’ll make sure everyone has all my work before I go under the laughing gas.” We know that even with seemingly harmless statements like that, we’re telling our colleagues more than some other teams do (dentist, laughing gas, next week). In our company, we pretty much know , who has a doctor, dentist, vet, kid activity to attend, or vacation day – it’s how we make sure our clients’ needs are always covered and that we are accountable to each other. It’s also because we know that we’re all people – and people, even the employed types, come with lives.
Of course, not everything should be shared so broadly. And we each have different levels of privacy about our personal lives. So, to help you decide when to share and when not to overshare, we bring you two lists.
On the suggested you share at work list:
- Your schedule during regular working hours if you won’t be available.
- If you have an illness or situation that might require one of your colleagues to help you.
- Your work style – Myers Briggs, DISC, Enneagram etc. These help other people understand how to work with you best.
On the “might share” list and maybe not with everyone if you don’t want to
- If you have a chronic illness that may require you to be out periodically for treatment.
- If a family member is very sick or has a terminal disease.
On the don’t share widely list
- Your medication list.
On the don’t ever share list:
- Details about your personal relationships.
On the always share list:
- Genuine words of appreciation about your coworkers.
I appreciate all of you! (See? It’s easy.)
And for more on this topic and other office advice, check out our new podcast, Millennial Minded. You can listen again here.