Over-Communicate

Know anyone that is an over-explainer? Few things can be more annoying when you’re in a hurry (we live in a hurry, don’t we?).

I’m asking you to become that annoying person and begin over-communicating with your team.  A sure sign of a breakdown in team leadership is when a member of the team begins to feel left out of the loop.  Communicate clearly and frequently with your team to ensure you’re all on the same page.

Here are a few things to keep in mind when over-communicating:

1. Avoid verbal-vomit. Sound contradictory? Not necessarily.  While it’s critical that you keep your team informed concerning important information, I’m not suggesting that you bore everyone with meaningless details.  Be frequent in your communication, but be concise. If you struggle with being concise, try to say it on Twitter (under 140 characters).
2. Know who to trust. The concept of over-communication does not apply outside of the essential leadership team. Know when to exercise caution when communicating outside of your team.
3. Sharing builds trust. When you share information with someone on your team, you’re investing small dividends of trust into them.  They’ll feel valued and integral to the team.

We’ve all heard the line, “I don’t know; I only work here,” a few times too many.  Let’s build healthy teams that lean more toward over-communication than ignorance.