On The Job

Can’t We Just Use a Can and a String???

Business communication is not a simple topic, but it is one that you tend to learn the more you work.  There are a lot of great books and websites out there on Business Communication, so I won’t focus on the nitty gritty details.  Instead, I’ll offer you this simple advice:

Be as transparent and concise as possible.

A business is just legal trickery to “create” an entity.  Which means that “business marketing” and “official messages” are nothing more than lies told by something that doesn’t really exist.

A business is made up human employees… so to communicate effectively, you have to sound like a human. You can’t communicate under any other guise.  Managers and communications guidelines and “sexual harassment policies” all exist to eliminate your voice.  Want proof?  Look at how stodgy most business conversations are.  You can’t tell a dirty joke to your boss (in most places), and you’d sure as hell better not talk about religion, politics, or anything else that might possibly spark any sort of conversation.

What’s worse – say the wrong thing at the wrong time to the wrong people, and somehow violate some business communications rule, and you’ll get written up for “overly direct communication” or some nonsense.

That’s bullsh!t.  Businesses are made up of people.  People are human.  Human beings tell dirty jokes, talk about sex, religion, politics, and any number of things that just don’t seem to happen in the corporate world.  Why not?  Are we suddenly not people when we go into the workplace?  Doesn’t that seem ridiculous?

I’ve broken the whole realm of business communication into three sections based on that premise.

• Communication Basics – let’s have some real conversations.
  
• Managing Perceptions – sometimes you just can’t win.
  
• Public Speaking – the most illogically feared thing of all time.
  

I talk a little bit about communication theory and how to become a better communicator in both sections.  If you’ve never studied communication theory, you should definitely at least read the Wikipedia Entry and go from there.  Enjoy – and if there’s something glaringly obvious I’ve missed, please use the “Contact Me” button!