Effective Communication In The Workplace

We’ve all been pulled up for something at work that ‘isn’t our fault’. 

The bus driver was late. 

I didn’t hit my deadline because I was waiting for Sally to finish her part of the project. 

If Sally wasn’t so slow, I wouldn’t have to waste all of my time waiting for her. 

All of the ‘dog ate my homework’ excuses were getting old at high school, unacceptable at university, and just annoying within the workplace. 

Working in fast paced environments such as a corporate office can mean emotions and stress levels run high, and it is easy to react rather than respond. Line Violations are a highly effective method in making sure your team keep all communication constructive rather than destructive. 

Response-ability

Accountability

Willingness 

Judgement 

Shame 

Blame 

Justify

Attack 

Judgement. Shame. Blame. Justify. Attack. The 5 characteristics of being below the line. Not owning up to mistakes, not taking responsibility for things not going according to plan, blaming co-workers, pointing the finger. Do you have team members that fall below the line? 

Response-ability. Accountability. Willingness. The 3 characteristics of being above the line. Taking ownership of actions, readily accepting challenges, responding rather than reacting. Do you have team members that stay above the line? 

Think to yourself, which group are the most successful within your business? Which group are respected by their co-workers? Relied on to get things done? I can take a very good guess and say it is those who spend majority of their time above the line. 

This is not only an effective method as a manager, but as a team member as well. To have this method in your head is to have awareness around how your reactions may be seen by your co-workers. 

A great place to start is to re-read emails or WhatsApp messages and think to yourself; ’am I taking response-ability here? Or am I blaming someone else?’, ’am I taking accountability for my actions, or am I trying to justify why I didn’t get something done?’. 

Beginning to think if your response is a line violation over online messaging will directly link to how you communicate in person. This is especially important for those having to work from home in the current environment. 

99.99% of the time, using communication that falls below the line does nothing to improve an encounter. Even though a justification or blame appears to be the easier route at the time, it doesn’t truly solve the situation, instead stretching it out further.

Next time you are either in a conversation at work or in your personal life, think to yourself, ‘’is my response going to be above or below the line?’’.