Guiding Principle: Overcommunicate with Leadership, Teammates, and Everyone Else
In Summary, This Principle Is Intended to
1. Remind everyone that all people matter and can add value to a situation, but only if they have access to information and context
2. Be dismissive of the ideas that
a. Secrets exist (its an information age, after all)
b. Secrets are business appropriate and help protect people
c. Information hoarding is healthy or helpful
3. Replace the dismissed ideas with new truths
a. Secrets are only necessary where trust is absent
b. The only person protected by a secret is the secret keeper
c. Information sharing is healthy, helpful, and required to get the best outcomes
4. Create an inclusive environment where we appreciate that diversity of thought/ideas might be the most valuable asset a company has access to
Note: I appreciate that sometimes things should not be shared if someone will get hurt or legally you are unable to, but in reality, those instances are much smaller than we lead others to believe.
Rationale
The familiar saying that content is king was true for a time. In fact, for a while, that was a pretty literal statement. The ability to create content was complicated and expensive. You had to own paper and a writing implement. You needed to have the time to think and write your thoughts down. You needed a place to keep your books (or scrolls). Access to the materials to write, time to think, and space to save were luxuries reserved for the wealthy or people in institutions where they were not busy spending their time, talent, and treasure just trying to survive. So, in years past, if something was written down and saved, it was necessary, at least to someone, and that someone was likely a king. Thus content was a thing of kings.
Consider how the world has changed with the introduction of the printing press, the computer, the internet 1.0, and then the internet 2.0 (social). And how now literally anyone can share whatever they want, about anything they want, in about any format they want, and literally anyone in the world could be exposed to that content. The world of content has changed.
Now that content is so freely available, it has lost its nobility, and therefore it can no longer be king. When a power shift like this happens, the most successful societies or businesses are the ones who adjust thinking and find a new approach the quickest.
I would argue (if we need to) that the new royalty is Lady Context. Its no longer the content that is shared but why you are sharing it (personal context of sharer), what is happening around what is being said (cultural context), the elements of truth being shared (factual context), and the life experiences of the person consuming the content (consumers context) that have the most impact on the value of content. These various contexts are the new crown jewels of the information age.
Why this Matters Part 1
Since content is everywhere, it is foolish to continue to operate like it isn’t, but it is worse than, in the business environment, it is not just stupid but irresponsible to ignore context, and here is why.
Reality check #1, the water cooler is now digitally available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. It is available by talk, text, video, podcast, paper, or screen. Not only is it constantly available, but society has decided that it is acceptable to spend time at the water cooler in all its forms more often, even outside the office. Add to this that the community is no longer required (by a social stigma) to drink the corporate kool-aid but can instead freely share opinions. We should realize that society has dramatically changed. Today the water cooler is full of people who are freely dispensing opinions (or facts or secrets) as often as they want, as loud as they want, and wherever they want.
Reality check #2, each person interprets the content they consume through the lens of their lived experience, personal communication preferences, and their relationship with the person sharing the content (personal context). These are scientifically proven concepts. We know more about how the brain works than ever. The implication is that when I am exposed to content, I make a personal interpretation of the content, and that is based 100% on the personal context that I bring to the situation. When I “self-discover” content outside of the intended context, then I am left in isolation to interpret, and once I do, it is an uphill battle to change my mind. A visual explanation.
It just keeps getting more complicated because since I found the content on my own (or it found me), I made my own interpretation of the content and shared it with others; I have now created a truth. Once I make the interpretation, whatever I decide becomes the narrative I tell myself and others. I begin to make decisions based on this narrative, and so do others. It becomes my truth, and any action I take based on my truth, I will try to justify it to myself and others.
So at the point in the future where you come to me and reveal the content to me, you aren’t presenting new information. You are presenting another interpretation of what I already know. This will either reinforce my truth, or your contrary view becomes a single data point that I will choose to evaluate at my discretion against my truth. What I promise doesn’t happen is that I instantly change my mind based on this one new data point. Instead, you are in an uphill battle to change my truth.
And if the content found me by way of someone else, there is a good chance I will lose some level of trust in the person who I believe should have shared it with me in the first place, especially if that person tries to present the information as new.
What you can do about
Share information freely. The first step in getting started is to ask yourself a question. The next time you are avoiding sharing something or told not to share something, ask yourself why? Why do I think that I need to keep this information a secret? Unless the answer to that question is you are honestly protecting someone from getting hurt, or you are legally unable to share, then choose to share the information.
Keep in mind your context of what is sharable and who is worthy of sharing with is going to be different than everyone else’s. So just because you aren’t sharing doesn’t mean others aren’t. Become the person people trust because you share information freely, not the person people question because of the perception that you horde information.
What I have found is that more often than not, the reasons I don’t share information are
I don’t want to deal with the people side of sharing (meetings, questions, emotions)
I don’t think the information is important or useful, but that isn’t really up to me; it's up to others
I disagree with the information; once again, I don’t get to filter and share only information I think is agreeable
What you will notice is all of those reasons why I don’t share are because I have made it all about me. Better for me is not a good vantage point for a member of a team to operate from. Being part of a team or leading a team is about what is best for the community, not what is best for the individual. Sharing information helps everyone be more successful, and therefore it is better for the community.
Keep reading for an approach to share information effectively.
Why this matters part 2
The world is getting more diverse in experience and thought. We need to continue to increase our comfort in leveraging that combined intelligence. This is such a popular idea it has a name, crowdsourcing. Crowdsourcing is very popular everywhere, except if you work in an environment that is concerned with hierarchy. In some businesses, knowledge is still believed to be king, and therefore the person with the subject matter expertise (knowledge) is viewed as a sage who should be worshipped and whose opinions should not be questioned. So people horde the information so they can be king.
A wiser approach is to consider the possibility that the best idea might come from an unexpected source and consider that the goal isn’t to be king but to win as a team. The most successful teams create opportunities for the unexpected source to reveal themselves. For this to happen intentionally, you must
Create a safe environment.
One of the keys to safety is trust.
Sharing information creates trust.
Allowing for openness creates trust. Here is what that looks like and what to do when jerk behavior is experienced
Provide people with enough information and context that they can make fully informed recommendations
What is the information (just the facts, but all of them, even the ones you don’t think matter)
Why it is important
What you are asking people to do with it (informed vs. take action)
What someone can do if they want more information/want to share a thought
Be available for questions and discussions
The context others are filtering through is not revealed unless space is created for it to show itself
These questions/discussions aren’t always easy; so assume positive intent when they happen
Ask more questions than just spewing information
Seek to understand and be an active listener
How to communicate more freely and effectively
If you now believe it is better to over-communicate, here is a process for doing it more effectively
Start with why
Why was I asked not to share this? If the answer is if you do, someone will get hurt, or it genuinely isn’t your story to tell, then don’t, but otherwise share.
Why do I want to share this? If the answer is because you are genuinely trying to be helpful or get to the best outcome, share away. If it is to spread rumors or gossip, keep your mouth shut.
Why is it important for people to know this? It helps you think through how to position it.
Share the What
Be specific and detailed but only share the truth (not your truth) the truth.
Admit what you don’t know and when you might know it.
The fact to inference (opinion) ratio should be extremely favorable towards facts, but don’t filter what facts you think are essential; share all the facts
What is the helpful context around what is happening that others need to know to help them hear the information the right way
Share the So What
Be specific as to why you are sharing and what you expect others to do with it (take action, be informed, share with others, prepare for something).
Share the where to go for more.
Remind people that you are willing and available to discuss more as needed or provide reference material as available. What you thought was the most critical thing might not be.
Conclusion
The concepts that information is still held firmly under lock and key and that the flow of information is something to be closely controlled are radically and irresponsibly flawed ideas. In a world full of information that is free and easy to come by, context has replaced content as the key driver of value in information. We must stop living like ostriches with our heads in the sand, shocked that people know “secrets” and instead share information and context freely. It is for the greater good to do so. Allow others the professional courtesy of being treated like an adult who can be trusted and allow others to trust you.
Bonus insight- when you keep no secrets, your life is easier because you never have to carry the burden of worrying about what did I already tell this person versus that person. Or which version of the truth does this person know.