Quieting the Noise - Part 1

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?