Have you ever heard someone say, “it is going to be challenging
to spin that into a positive message”? How about “there is nothing positive
that I can find in that situation”? If not those, what about “lets find a way to
share this without causing any noise”? Let’s face it, communication can be
challenging to manage, especially when a project is not going according to expectations,
when the various audiences have had bad experiences on previous projects, or when
a group is risk averse. Finding the right timing, language, and vehicle for
communication can make or break a relationship. When done well, it builds
trust, increases throughput, and increases velocity. When done poorly, it can cause
rework, increase the level of documentation, slow project progress, and erode
trust. When aspects of a project causing delays, increasing cost, or reducing
quality, project communication with any of the audiences or groups involved becomes
an art form. Clarity in messaging, in other words, being clear about the purpose
or intention of the communication and having a vision for the outcome is
critical, it will guide the language, timing, and vehicle of the communication
and will have a clear focus on what is most important to land with the audience
and the trust that is built or lost with the communication.
Communicating effectively is a life-long endeavor, one that
requires intention and attention. There are some personal practices that will
make a difference when it comes to communicating. The personal practices that
have made a difference in my ability to deliver a difficult message to a team
member, client, or leadership come from various authors and organizations and
have been used for thousands of years. When used consistently, they create
trust, which is why they are effective when used in communicating challenging
information. Alignment with these fundamental ways of being will create an
environment in which communication flows. The search for the timing, language,
and vehicle for communication will begin to flow more naturally as these
practices become ingrained. The first two, integrity and responsibility, are
explained below. I will explore the remaining next week.
Integrity
Integrity put simply is being your word. That means being
your word to yourself and others. For example, you are invited to a party and
you say you will be there. What if something happens that prevents you from
attending? First, if you are breathing, it is a choice to attend or not. Being
your word does not require you to neglect yourself for others, it does require
you to acknowledge the choice you are making to others and to let them know before
the event. Not showing up is being out of integrity. Having an honest and healthy
conversation as to what is preventing you from attending is being in integrity
with yourself and others. The Newton’s third law of motion states “For every
action, there is an equal and opposite reaction”. For every project action there
is going to be an equal and opposite reaction. What that means is when our
communication comes from a place of integrity, trust will come back.
Responsibility
This simply means that we are responsible for the outcomes
associated with the project we are managing, not some of outcomes, every outcome.
It means that when things are working, we can take responsibility and when they
aren’t working, we can take responsibility. When we take responsibility for
every action, every decision, every metric, whether favorable or not, we build
trust and maintain our integrity. Taking responsibility means that you do not wait
for information working under an assumption that someone will get it to you,
you work under an assumption that you are responsible for ensuring you have the
information you need to be able to be effective in your job. You no longer look
for others to push information to you, you go after the information that is
necessary. You no longer allow delays and obstacles to slow you down, you look
for opportunities to move forward, to continue forward momentum and progress.
You don’t say, “I don’t know”, you say, “I will find out”, you don’t say “I
couldn’t get”, you say “I need your support in getting”. Taking responsibility
is not about having the answers, it is about always being able to ask the
questions, to stay curious about possibilities, and to continue to drive toward
the goal.
Next week we will explore the additional tenets that have
made a difference for me in communicating with the client, the team, and
leadership. Integrity means that I do what I say I will do and if a change must
occur, that communicating that change before the change is made matters to
everyone. Saying a change was made and explaining it after the fact erodes
trust, no matter what the explanation. Making sure everyone knows change is
coming and the reason for the change builds trust. Taking responsibility for
both the message and taking responsibility for managing the reaction to the
message also matters. It isn’t just sending communication out and then hoping
for the best. Communication continues once a reaction occurs, whether favorable
or not. Taking responsibility for managing misinterpretations and miscommunications
is part of the project managers responsibilities. Practicing integrity and
responsibility in your life will make a difference in your project management.
What are you practicing today?
