Page 42 - The Voice of Authority

do with you—such as Scott and Laci Peterson? Jon-
Benet Ramsey? Natalie Holloway? Steve Irwin? The
Amish schoolchildren? Anna Nicole Smith? (Often?)

If your answers agreed with the ones in parentheses,
congratulations—you’re part of the human race. The
hunger for details is a natural reaction. So when leaders
withhold details—consciously or unconsciously—about
things as important as our work, they generate anger, con-
fusion, and disbelief.
Good communicators can’t be cavalier about giving
complete information.

Why People Skimp on the Details

Leave-the-Thinking-to-Us Mentality
Some teams, departments, and organizations have a pa-
ternalistic culture. The senior executives view run-of-the-
mill employees as the children of the organization, not to
be trusted with the real facts, information, and explana-
tions about decisions or actions.
On various occasions, they take these different stances:
“We’ll let you know if something becomes important, so
just don’t worry about it.” “We don’t want to upset you
with this news—maybe it’ll go away without your ever
having to hear about it.” Or, “This is a very complex prob-
lem—much too involved for you to understand.”
Whether the effort is well intentioned or not, such cul-
ture typically chokes people. They have no chance for in-
put or feedback on the ideas or decisions. When their cre-
ativity is limited, morale goes down. And without the
details, buy-in is limited. People don’t have the logic that
supports announced decisions.

30 The Voice of Authority