Over-Communication: Is It REALLY Worth It?

Since the dawn of mankind, communication has played a key role in the history of organized work. However, almost as soon as co-operative endeavors started, so did the misunderstandings.?

The digital age seemed to fix a lot of problems; emails, notes, video meetings… You name it. It became apparent that being physically there, next to your coworkers, was no longer a necessity.

And thus the era of remote work began.

Sure, this means massive improvements regarding our quality of life, but it doesn’t come free of charge.?

Our clarity and effectiveness when communicating may have been compromised; no matter how comfortable and efficient we may be on our own, we are still social beings that naturally talk, question, and create as a part of the collective.?

That is probably the only thing that in-office work situations have going for them and with good reason.?

But does this represent a death sentence for us??Is there a way we can match this level of disclosure in a work-from-home environment??

Well, over-communicating is a way to do it, sure, but what does this mean, exactly?

What is it?

Basically, it’s making sure everyone is on the same page.?

Keeping a consistent record of everything, using public and explicit task lists, double and triple-checking with management, maintaining a watchful eye across every little detail, et al.?

These are only some assets in our priceless remote work toolbox.

Simply put, it’s setting an extraordinary amount of effort into stating the “obvious” around the work environment in order to make it abundantly clear to everyone. It sounds simple because, to a basic extent, it is.?

There is a big chance that you are already doing some (or even many) of these things on your office job.?The issue at hand now is systematizing it so the entire team can follow suit and be a part of it.

This topic hides more than a couple of easy-to-forgo caveats, so let’s break it down.

The Good

If you’re already in a management position, the concept of communication being a good thing comes as absolutely no surprise to you, but regardless of what position you are in, a solid, stable, structured organization model can and will improve your productivity and workflow.

Even if you’re new to over-communication and its ways.

Not only does it represent fewer liabilities for the employer, ensuring everyone’s work is clearly shown and displayed, but also it greatly improves information transparency and transmission for the entire team as a unit.

Every resource needed becomes instantly at hand.

The Bad

It’s annoying, counter-intuitive, and time-consuming.?

From the getgo, it can have a somewhat icky-feeling, appearing to be invasive, even.

On a surface level, over-communicating can be mistaken for oversharing; a mountain of emails, scheduled (or sometimes unscheduled) meetings, an endless abundance of pending task bullet-points, and thousands of silly little things that appear to delay your daily productivity. But then again: this is oversharing, not over-communicating.

When over-communication is done right, none of the abovementioned issues should arise.

The Ugly

There is no way around it.

We know it: it’s easy to start out truly sick of it and get really lost in the transition between communication models; a clash betwixt the old communication ways and the new ones.?

But these troubles, as all trouble, will eventually end.

Once the tiresome, confusing adaptation period is done we guarantee that you and your team will all feel more productive, better organized, and completely understood.

Simply said: It’s worth it and it works.

There are many ways to work remotely. This is the right way.?

F*ck it.?

Work from home.