Who's Listening?

Who’s Listening. No…I mean it. Who’s listening – as in nobody listens anymore. Want to prove it? Walk into a McDonald’s or Starbucks and tell them, “I’d like a large, black, decaf coffee.” “OK. And do you want room for cream?” “Large, black, decaf coffee.” “Right. Small or large?” “Large, black, decaf coffee.” “Sure. And did you want regular or decaf?” “Could I just have a glass of water?” And so it goes, more times than not. And it’s true in the rest of the world. “OK. Let’s patch around the processor.” “OK, I’ve got it into the processor” “Around the processor.” “Oh. Well, that explains the overload LED.” or… “Grab the tripod; leave the batteries in the van.” “Here ya go. I got the batteries.” So what’s the solution. Ah…solution. See, I’m not just ranting. Well the first part of the solution is to make sure you’re saying what you mean – and in the manner you intend the action to occur. Yes, the “other guy” isn’t the only responsible party. As your instructions become vague, the chances of a correct response become less. Then, be sure you have the other party’s attention. If it’s a person-to-person meeting, make eye contact throughout the entire instruction. Give instructions in easy-to-understand language and don’t rush through them. Make sure not to leave anything out. While that doesn’t mean, “OK, walk to the door. Grab the handle, turn the handle counterclockwise, push the door, walk through, close the door behind you,” it does mean you can’t leave anything germane out and expect the other party to fulfill your request. Finally, be exact. “The box below the green digitizer box – I think that’s it. Right hand knob, no, switch. Turn it on.” Now, there’s a good one. It may solve the problem or it could launch a cruise missile somewhere. Then, get the other party to repeat the instruction back to you. No big deal. Happens in air traffic control all the time and when a person feeds it back to you properly, you know you at least have half a shot of their getting it right. This is especially important if you’re communicating via phone or in some other remote manner. Yes! Even texts get misinterpreted. One last important point: better communication usually comes with more communication - the more you work with someone, the better the odds of getting your point across or understanding theirs. Take the personal time to get to know the folks you work with. It's makes things a lot easier!