Well if you have not paid attention or missed some of the pickups parked on the side of the road near a patch of woods… it is deer hunting season!  And one of he “sayings” related to this season I have heard over the years was: “If You Are NOT OUT THERE… Then You Are NOT IN!”

What does this statement mean to those involved in deer hunting?

Simply it means that if you: (1) sleep-in, (2) decide it is too cold, (3) watch a movie, or (4) go to work on an overdue project; you will not be out in the woods and not seriously be in the hunting game for the necessary times that are available!

OK go ahead… now ask how does all this special information add up to a quality TRIPLE III TIME message?

Well I believe this statement: “If You Are NOT OUT THERE… Then You Are NOT IN!” also very appropriately applies to the need for timely, dedicated, workplace COMMUNICATION.  Whether you are in private business or offer services in the public sector, if you fail to have a regular, strong and even unique process for getting your message out to those you work with or work for… you are really NOT OUT THERE and thereby NOT IN the game of effective successful COMMUNICATION.

Just like getting your hunting blind/food plots ready, communicating regularly in a quality way sets you up for better business/service opportunities.  Also building in diverse methods of communicating within your workplace network can also enhance your potential of “being in the right place at the right time” (also a favorite deer hunting saying). 

Bottomline: Be OUT THERE with great COMMUNICATION and you will be IN with greater business/service success.

Somehow it seems like the QUALITY of personal and business communications has never become more important everyday…EVERYDAY!  Likewise, the challenges we face with regard to high level sources, volume and speed of communication have never been more intertwined.  As a consultant/creative advisor to individuals and organizations, I continually stress that QUALITY communication overlaps/impacts everything.  So this weeks TRIPLE III TIME message asks everyone to consider: A Communication SUPPLY CHAIN!

First, check out this simple diagram:

In order to be effective, I believe the communicator must decide where their message falls on the SUPPLY CHAIN.  Are you just creating Awareness of an issue or asking for Action too?  Determining where your message “fits” on the SUPPLY CHAIN will help in crafting it for clarity and timeliness.  If you (the communicator) take a moment to deliberately consider where your message falls on the SUPPLY CHAIN, it will appropriately be more defined, targeted, and simplified.  Too often time, energy and resources are wasted rehashing old or confused messages.  Deciding early if your message is for Awareness…or an Action…or a general Response…or a Revised Action will enhance communication simplicity…and yes QUALITY!

Taking responsibility before and as you communicate to consider your message’s placement on the SUPPLY CHAIN is a leadership job!  Don’t allow communication sources, volume and speed to confuse the QUALITY of your messages.  Understandably, everyone has different communication styles.  But if we could all use A Communication SUPPLY CHAIN as our common guide…I believe QUALITY would result.

Photo via: https://www.pgeveryday.com

In the book Mavericks at Work by William C. Taylor and Polly Labarre, one quote that stands out is: “A solution is what results when you stop thinking about the problem.”  So, although I know most of you were assuming I would be connecting Thanksgiving Day with the TRIPLE III TIME “Please Pass the Positive” message title ….but how about if we study the quote first.

Think about it.  Even when you ask someone simply: “How is it going?” …how often do you hear primarily about a problem? I believe that unfortunately we bring up the negative first…and then problems take up the larger portion of any discussion.  This bad habit also exists in every news cast and usually is the headline in most newspapers.  Wouldn’t it be refreshing to hear a newsperson begin their program with: “Today insert school name reported 100% attendance for the fourth day in a row!”  Or “We want to salute all of the US Navy sailors on the U.S. insert ship name who have been on an ocean assignment for over six (6) months…Thank you so much!” Starting with the positive…not the problems…just creates smiles.

So as you sit down at your Thanksgiving Day table, how about if you start a new tradition and ask everyone to first: “Please Pass the Positive”.  And who knows, if we stop thinking so much about problems, positive solutions may show up before Christmas.

In recent staff/organizational development discussions…the “how do you get better at prioritizing for your workplace?” has been a primary topic.  I first told them I believe the improvement approaches vary by individual…but to get a better visual of the prioritization challenge the group had fun taking part in a couple mind exercises.

First, I asked the group to think about all the messages they receive each day via telephone, in-person, email, newspaper, television, social media, etc.  And consider each message as a “sticky-note” …color coordinated by source…all placed on a white board.  There were laughs and gasps…but all seemed to understand how overwhelming that would be for just one day.  The exercise concluded when I asked them to view their imaginary boards and determine if they can see specific priorities coming through…or are their boards more like those pictures that you can’t see an image unless someone points it out to you?!?

Think about it!

The second exercise had everyone visualize your messages trying to be funneled into your brain…and a smaller “pipe” showing priorities exiting your brain.  Again, the giggles…but more importantly was the realization of what do you do with all of that excess messaging information taking up space in your mind?

This is another time management area where SIMPLICITY MATTERS!  As messages come to you it is critical to ask: What is wanted or needed to make it a priority…before making decision room for details.  Also, identifying the timeframes for action is a screening tool for priority setting that will assist in opening (or closing) the messaging input funnel.  Additionally, it is YOUR responsibility to inform message senders of your process for priority setting and that they too must understand that SIMPLICITY MATTERS.

Life working on the frontline often has a feeling of isolation. Most times your main line of COMMUNICATION rests with co-workers and first-tier management.  Contact and discussion time with those at the top levels of business/organization operations are often infrequent and “courtesy-call-ish” in nature.  The resulting personnel activity usually follows a common track:

• Internal complaining
• Business remains stagnant
• Work activity continues but…with minimal leadership influence
• Workplace “hiding-spots” develop for frontliners and top-level leaders (i.e. He or she is just too busy or “Does Anyone Hear ME…US?” anyway)

Well for this TRIPLE III TIME message…I am going to push the responsibility for COMMUNICATION in the direction of the frontliners.  Think about these ideas:

1. When did you last send a direct request for a meeting with the lead person(s)?
2. Have you ever structured a formal agenda to share with leaders as part of your meeting request…IN WRITING?
3. Because we live in a SHOW-ME WORLD… what new service/product/operation are you ready to show them?
4. Do you make sure your request is all business and not a personal visit moment?
5. If you work with a team…are they all involved in the leader meeting request idea?
6. Are you prepared for whatever form of feedback may result (i.e. professional discomfort)?
7. Is the information you wish to discuss progressive/action-based?
8. Have you considered a very specific meeting timeframe (i.e. one (1) hour)?
9. What meeting structures have you considered to make sure it can NOT become a whining session?
10. Finally be sure to identify the 1 or 2 or 3 priorities for the visit (i.e. take-home ideas)

BOTTOMLINE:  Leadership is a two-way street…and as frontline leaders it is more than appropriate for you to take the meeting request initiative.