Managing Sticky Situations at Work

176 Managing Sticky Situations at WorkBefore we step back and examine the sticky situations that evolvefrom the e-mail explosion, we must look at when it is appropriate toe-mail and when another form of communication serves us better. Inaddition to examining e-mail in this fashion, we must also considerinstant messages (IM’s), text messaging, and all other forms ofe-communication.One of the biggest problems with e-communication is the ‘‘send’’button. As soon as you hit that button, you cannot turn back. Furthermore,e-communication prevents us from judging a reaction to ourmessage. In Chapter 1 we looked at the power of nonverbal communication.Via countless nonverbal messages, we pass along our feelingsand the underlying ‘‘intent’’ of the communication. When we sayto a colleague, ‘‘That report really should go to the boss,’’ do wemean it should, meaning the boss needs to get it, but don’t send itfor goodness sakes! Or, do we mean, he should get the report, andyessendit,like,now!Arewejoking?Arewebeingsarcastic?Arewedeeply affected? We cannot convey any of these feelings throughe-communication where the risk of misunderstanding skyrockets.Yet, more and more of us are writing notes to colleagues, clients, subordinates,and bosses and expecting those one-way communicationnotes to convey meaning.How can we take advantage of the amazing convenience ofe-communication and avoid the risks of miscommunication?CHOOSING THE RIGHT KIND OF COMMUNICATIONWhen we look at communication of all types, we must evaluate themedium in which we communicate. In the past we had fewer choices,namely face to face, telephone, or written letter. For years people wonderedabout the best time to use each of these media. Clearly, when wehad something urgent to convey or when we wanted to make our messageparticularly personal, we chose a face-to-face interaction. Whenthe message was less personal, we moved down the continuum to telephonecommunication and finally to the least personal, the businessletter. After years of struggle, that is, when we sent letters when weshould have called or when we called when we should have communicatedin person, we finally figured it out.Today, however, we have many more choices and those sheer numbersadd to the confusion around what to do and when. For example,a letter no longer seems impersonal. In fact, because we get so few lettersor handwritten notes, we take notice when one comes across our