Is there some new, unwritten grammatical guideline to help baby-boomers decipher vague and unpunctuated text messages in the workplace? I feel like I am walking a tightrope from which one side, I fall into the abyss of “asking too many questions,” and on the other, “wrongly assuming I can interpret the message correctly.”
It reminds me of a vintage Saturday Night Live skit featuring the late Ed Asner. The scene opens with Ed (a retiring engineer in a nuclear power station) and his team sitting at the reactor’s control console. Ed tells the team that “the most important thing to remember is that you can’t put too much water in a nuclear reactor.” No sooner have the words left his mouth, Ed keels over dead, and the alarms in the reactor begin to blare. The scientists engage in a frenzied discussion about whether they should add water or not add water. Naturally, the skit ends on an explosive note.
What I do in the workplace, these days, is not rocket science. In fact, I abdicated my management career for a job that simply allows me to be accountable for my own work. The job is quite fun, and gives me time to run my travel business, but the communication flow…not so much. Admittedly, the traditional standards for clear communication were drummed into my head during my pursuit of degrees in retail management and education, but I am shocked and dismayed by what I am seeing.
1. If you are sending a text message that references an email, please ensure everyone is getting the email (especially if there has recently been a problem with that).
2. Please be concise. If the most important part of the message is that no one needs to report to work tomorrow… say that!
3. Please use punctuation. For example, “please check email for no deliveries tomorrow.” Does that mean the email will arrive tomorrow?
We laugh about punctuation memes and poor communication on social media, but it’s not funny. Furthermore, no one deserves to be condescended to, when clarification is warranted. People become successful by asking questions and gaining a clear understanding of expectations and responsibilities. It would behoove us all to be clear communicators and generous with insights. If we want a robust workforce, let’s stop being lazy about how we communicate.