Thursday, June 9, 2011

Leave some things left unsaid

Work relations are a lot like personal relationships. Honesty and communication are vital. However, you can cross the line to insult and patronisation.

If someone is being a bit grumpy,  they may be having a bad time at home, they may be faced with uncooperative co-workers and don’t want to tell you about it, they may be annoyed with you. Give them a few days to get over it before you talk about it.

If someone is making a bad decision, consider letting them do it as long as the situation can be reversed to some degree later. Experience is a powerful thing.

If someone is late on delivery, they may already feel very guilty about it. Criticising them on it may not be the smartest thing to do.

If someone makes a mistake, telling them that you knew it would be that way is not the smartest thing to do.

Don’t tell someone who just made a purchase that you know of a better deal somewhere else, or that another product is better. That is just plain annoying.

People generally do the best they can. Set rules, set boundaries, but otherwise leave people to get on with things the best they can without constant commentary.

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