Page 150 - The Voice of Authority

the building where you work, or the conference you’re
attending, how long do you want the powers-that-be to
hold the information before releasing it to you? Al-
though not always life-and-death situations, coworkers
and customers have a similar angst about product or ser-
vice defects.
Delay can turn crises into disasters. And if the delay
doesn’t kill, maim, or destroy, at the very least, it infuri-
ates people.

Nanoseconds or Nada

Start by having a crisis plan and let everyone know what it
is. Then for the everyday communication, keep the fol-
lowing principles in mind.

Reduce the Volume

If the neighbors next door are always yelling, you won’t
pay much attention to a tirade at 2:00 in the afternoon. But
if you never hear from them and then all of a sudden a
blood-curdling scream wakes you at midnight, you’re
probably going to call 911.
The same holds true for your e-mail. The more people
hear from you, the less they notice. If people typically read
your information only “the morning after”—the morning
after they were supposed to have attended a meeting, the
week after they were supposed to have submitted a report,
the day after they were supposed to have been on a tele-
conference—investigate why. Do people receive so much
trivial, unnecessary, or related information from you that
they ignore the vital?
If so, decrease the flow.

138 The Voice of Authority