Category: Uncategorized

Humour In The Office: The Do’s and The Don’ts 

Humour in the office edited image

 

Laughter is considered one of the best stress-busters out there.

It is a great way to lighten up the atmosphere and the mood.

Aren’t people with a good sense of humour, who have jokes for every occasion such saviours?

Cracking jokes and laughing out loud in an informal setting is one thing. Being amongst friends and family, peers and acquaintances gives a certain level of freedom in LOL-ing our way out of seriousness. Even the edgier kind of humour finds a certain acceptability.

Professional spaces have more stringent boundaries and codes of conduct, and this is applicable to all the funny business as well. But that doesn’t mean a complete embargo on cracking good jokes and displaying a healthy sense of humour.

So first, let us see some good things that can come out of using humour in a professional setting.

Information Retention:

Adding humour in presentations, meetings can engage everyone in a better way, and in turn, increasing the retention of what has been talked about. Remembering why and where we laughed a bit during a presentation helps us to look back and actually remembering the whole presentation. Humour can be thus used to make impactful presentations, and more engaging meetings.

 

Breaking the News:

Putting an otherwise worrying message across with help of humour is a good idea to lighten up gloom. The humour can also help one realise that whatever happens, they will be able to cope, and that things will fall into place.

Sandwiching difficult to convey news between doses of humour is a good idea if you don’t want to send people into panic modes. Note that we are talking about difficult news, not sad news.

 

Building Relations:

Cracking a simple, innocent but a joke apt to the situation can furthermore help in building and nurturing relationships. A good sense of humour is a delightful way to put to ease a nervous new employee. Humour is a great tool for rapport building. It can also add light and positive vibes in the office space.

 

But since we are talking about professional contexts, there are some things one should especially keep in mind.

 

Do Not Try Too Hard:

The main task is to do the job, not trying to be funny. Your office isn’t a platform for practicing stand-up comedy. If you feel you aren’t naturally funny, it’s best to think twice before saying anything which you think might trigger unwanted reactions. Laughter is used to make things easy, not awkward or worse. It is best if laughter comes through an unforced, organic process.

 

The Right Kind:

The kind of humour and jokes, and where and how you are using them is very important. There are jokes which are simply inappropriate to the situation or are just blatantly offensive. Avoid cracking jokes directed at communities or sections of people. And there are people who can take a joke, and those who can’t. Make sure to keep such distinctions in mind.

 

Sensible Humour:

Context is extremely important. And so is having a sense how a joke has gone with everyone. Always assess the situation before making any seemingly humorous remark. You don’t want anyone to feel too uncomfortable. Cracking a joke in front of someone who has just been fired ,for example, may not go well, even if your intention was to “cheer” them up. Sometimes, the context demands you let the storm pass. Don’t joke around just for the sake of it.

 

Humour in the office is thus a tight-rope balancing act of art. Ideally, it should not feel forced and artificial. But once the art has been mastered, it goes a long way in easing stress levels, tension and boredom. Humour, in a professional setting is all about understanding the rights and wrongs.

 

Say It Right: The 7Cs of Communication

communication

 

Communication is an integral part  of our professional interactions.

But unfortunately, communication is something that is very easy to mess up. And the worst part is it is very difficult to see what exactly went wrong with the way we communicated: what we say makes perfect sense to us.

The 7 Cs come in handy here. Putting our intended message through these tests is a great way to ensure the message is as well articulated as possible. Be it emails, phone calls, text messages or letters, putting a message through these criteria can make our professional interpersonal interactions much less prone to misunderstandings.

Let us first take a look at the 7 Cs themselves. A message should be: clear, concise, concrete, correct, coherent, complete, courteous. Additionally, it should also be considerate, and credible.

Sounds too obvious? Let us see how things can go wrong if these seemingly basic “filters” aren’t applied.

  1. Clear:

A clear message conveys a specific goal and purpose. Its meaning is well-understood. After reading/listening to it, we know why was it sent to us in the first place. It is not ambiguous.

A: I would like to talk to you about the meeting.

B: I would be glad to discuss with you about the client meeting that took place on the 23rd. Let me know when is a good time to call.

Doesn’t B sound much clearer about the sender’s intentions?

 

  1. Concise:

A concise message is brief and to the point. There are no unnecessary digressions. There are no unnecessary repetitions. If it can be conveyed in four sentences, it should not extend to ten sentences.

A: I received your email and I must say it was very pleasant to receive your email. As you mentioned in the email, I will send in the necessary details but there’s just one doubt as to what is the day I should keep in mind as the last day to send the mail.

B: Glad to receive your mail. I will send in the necessary details. Is there a deadline I should keep in mind?

A has a lot of repetition, with circular communication. B on the other hand packs in information in just a few sentences.

 

  1. Concrete:

A concrete message has details and facts necessary to substantiate the message. It does not include empty, generic or rhetorical statements.

A: There was a lot of productive discussion at the meeting. It went well.

B: The meeting saw a lot of discussion pertaining to the pending IT upgrades. A decision has been made to upgrade all the computers from Windows 7 to Windows 10.

B gives a reason why the meeting was productive. A just makes a passing remark.

 

  1. Correct:

Correctness doesn’t just mean the truth value of facts and details, but also the grammatical structure and syntax of the message. And not to forget proper, readable fonts if it’s a written one. It is a great idea to proofread any written message before sending it in. A correct message also uses appropriate language, and is not wrongly timed.

A: Hello guys, we are having an amazing Christmas party next week. Looking forward to you presences. Detailing will be sent soon.

B:

Greetings,

We cordially invite you to the annual Christmas party. We look forward to your presence. The details shall be sent soon.

A not only uses a very informal, and hence inappropriate language, it also has errors, “you presences” instead of “your presence”; “detailing” instead of “details”. B has a balance of formal and festive. Note how spellcheckers are blind to such errors as in A.

 

  1. Coherent:

A coherent message maintains direction of the topic and doesn’t turn into a rambling. Much like the clarity aspect, it successfully conveys the purpose of the message.

A: Mr. X from the Accounting department wanted to talk to you about some particulars you had submitted the other day. I don’t know if there is a problem, there is certainly a doubt. He hasn’t talked about that , I am not sure how urgent this is.

B: Kindly get in touch with Mr. X from the Accounting department as soon as possible. There seems to be a doubt pertaining to the particulars you have submitted.

 

  1. Complete:

It is important to include all the necessary details like date, time, location, names, etc. in accordance to the message. The receiver should feel informed, not confused.

A: Ready for the meeting tomorrow?

B: This mail is a reminder for the meeting scheduled tomorrow, i.e. 10th January 2019, in the conference room, at 11 am.

A just throws in a random statement. Just a general reminder isn’t enough, one must provide the specific details.

 

  1. Courteous:

A courteous message is honest and civil, treating the receiver as a sensible human being– not talking down in any way. One should be careful it doesn’t have a passive aggressive tone, even while expressing some sort of a disapproval or negative feedback.

A:  I have been mailing you repeatedly to send me the details of the company but I think you have other much more important things going on.

B: Apologies for the repeated mails. I wanted to remind you to send me the details of the company as soon as possible.

Isn’t A much more likely to make someone feel like they have done something terribly wrong?

 

Be it online or offline communication, it is important to remember that we can’t read each other’s minds, and it is important to be a an empathetic sender and a perceptive receiver.

One Week Into New Year

New Year article image

 

New Year. Resolutions. Hopes. Looking back at the year gone, and looking forward to the year ahead. Parties, festivities, gatherings give a certain high. The exuberance around the event rubs off on you in its own way even if you choose to stay indoors, and have a quiet time. But what about the week after the New Year?

A point comes when the high spirits begin their descent. The routine stares you dead in the eye. The new year begins to feel not so new anymore.

One week into the new year, and we often begin to lose all the motivation we had gathered.

So, what are the things you can do to keep the enthusiasm and the level of motivation sustained?

 

Relevant Resolutions:

A reason we often slip up and thus lose the motivation is when we make resolutions which are more or less thrust upon us. The media tells us we should resolve to go to the gym from now on, eat healthy, improve our lifestyles, and be happier. But do we actually assess our own needs? Really, our own, unique needs?

Imagine Mr. X is a classic Gen Z person who texts and emails very well. But he lacks the communication skills needed to talk on phone, and face to face. He has lost some clients in 2018 owing to his inability to maintain client relations and networks. The need of the hour is to polish up this skill-set, not go on making a popular resolution.

If you need to work on your communication skills, a resolution to go to the gym might not really give the sense of accomplishment you were hoping to achieve.

It doesn’t matter if you are a week into the New Year. It’s not too late to think of something new and much more relevant!

 

Realistic Resolutions:

One of the biggest reasons we can’t keep at our New Year resolutions beyond a week or so is because we don’t consider the reality. The end of the year festive spirit all around gets us carried away, and we make grand resolutions.

Making realistic resolutions can help us fulfil them with much ease, leading to an increased sense of accomplishment, and an increased sense of happiness and an increased sense of feeling meaningful. And thus increased motivation.

For example, Ms. Y has had a problem with punctuality. She makes a resolution to reach office on time from now on. One needs tremendous patience and will-power to hang on to it while the bad habit takes its own sweet time to correct. Chances of giving up are high.

Instead, she can make a resolution to reach office on time at least twice or thrice a week. And then she can increase the number of days as she succeeds. The chances of getting frustrated by failure and giving up are relatively low.

One step is better than beginning to run and slipping and falling on the way.

You can alter your resolution this way, rather than completely giving up.

 

Something to Look Forward:

Resolutions aren’t the only way to kick start a New Year.

You can make little changes in your working style, your desk, your surroundings to feel like the year is truly new.

We often feel the sense of routine slowly creeping in when we don’t see any ‘changes’, when we don’t see anything new around the office.

“New Year, new me” is a bit unrealistic and even a bit of a cringe. But “New Year, new stuff” can work really well.

Do not underestimate the power of little things to make you look forward to something.

One week into the New Year, but it’s never too late to purchase a dainty little pen-holder, or a sleek looking laptop cover. Retail-therapy need not be about pocket-harming splurges!

 

Continuity:

So, you have tried everything you could to keep your level of enthusiasm high but nothing has worked that well.

You feel frustrated, and feel like this year is going to be no different than 2018.

Now is the time to look back at the pending things. Sometimes, working itself is the solution.

It’s a new year but that doesn’t mean there won’t be anything unfinished from the previous one!

If you feel nothing has changed, use it positively! Convert that feeling of everything being the same into a feeling of continuity. Pick on the rhythm and continue with it. The New Year can sure give old things a new sense of purpose.

Sign those documents, get onto that next step, continue working like just another day, and hang on to that sense of rhythm! Who said New Year is just for setting new goals? You can always rework on some old ones.

New Year is a wonderful excuse to begin everything anew, to get into good habits and getting rid of the bad ones. Setting workable goals, or reworking old goals, and finding something meaningful to do would ensure the motivation levels stay high beyond the first week. It’s a new day, a new year and a wonderful opportunity to find new solutions to age old problems!

 

 

How Not to be Negative with A Negative Feedback

negative feedback image

 

Let us face it. Feedback is hard to receive no matter how much we say we are open to “criticism.” It is an even more difficult task to give one. Instant feedback ranks the highest on the toughness scale.

A negative feedback brings a whole new level of discomfort which many of us are ill-equipped to deal with.

Performance appraisals are one thing. We are prepared for them. On the other hand, instant feedback, where there is an immediate step by step pointing of what wrong you are doing could be difficult to receive because everything is happening there and then. At the same time, you are expected to make corrections ASAP, as opposed to a performance appraisal which is more long term in its scope. And giving one is a dreaded task. One fears aggression, conflict, even tears.

So, what are some ways one can give or/and receive instant feedback, especially if it leans toward the negative?

Receiving:

  • Pause:

It is easy to get defensive when one hears something negative about a project one did so much dedication.

Actually listening, and not preparing responses to a negative feedback is a good idea. And to do that, taking a pause is essential.

Listen to what they have to say, and process the information.

Sometimes, when one looks back at the job, the mistakes pointed out are in fact, there.

  • Nothing Personal:

While listening to what others have to say about you, especially if it’s more on a negative side, it is a good idea to remember to not take things personally. There might be a problem with your work, but that doesn’t mean that the person has a problem with you.

Even if the person has a problem with you, it is never a bad idea to take a second look at your work. To make sure you aren’t being misled, the next point comes to rescue.

  • Know Thyself:

It is good to have conviction in oneself. It is good to feel that the work ones does is good enough. Confidence is essential. Self-awareness even more so. Being aware about one’s skills and capabilities is necessary. But it is also great to have enough confidence to take a second, third, fourth look at one’s work.

The same confidence and self-awareness could help you to pause and look back on your job when you receive feedback. They could be used to realise that even if you do receive a feedback that is negative, it wouldn’t be too difficult for you to understand your mistakes and make corrections. You would know when to make corrections.

Confidence and self-awareness can also help you, in case of a positive feedback to remain level-headed.

 

Giving:

  • The Three Words:

Be honest, gentle and non-judgmental. As basic as it sounds, these are difficult stances to achieve.

Observe the steps in the process, and then point out the mistakes gently. Jumping to conclusions about someone’s work doesn’t go a long way.

The praise-criticise-praise approach works here. Adding these cushions is necessary to make sure the person receiving the feedback doesn’t lose confidence.

At the same time, it is also necessary to keep a certain honesty wherever needed. Partly to ensure quality, partly to communicate exactly what needs to be done but also because it is easy to see through when someone is sugar-coating too much.

  • Seriously, Nothing Personal:

As mentioned before it is important to remember while receiving feedback that there is nothing personal. It is even more so while giving one.

Make sure you are being as objective as you can while giving someone a feedback. It is necessary to keep aside office politics, personal biases, likes and dislikes.

You could dislike a person but still appreciate their work. You could be fond of someone but still be able to point out their mistakes.

  • Tell, Don’t Scold:

Tone and body language are important things that can add or remove warmth and comfort. Sometimes, it is not always the words but how they have been said that make a difference.

It is important to realise the difference between scolding and telling someone. Plus, it is a great idea to keep in mind that one is dealing with adults, and not kids, to make sure the tone is not patronising or belittling.

It is not possible to do away with feedback. What would happen to the quality then? Feedback is essential to progress, to make things better and learn. It is about all about the right way to give and receive.

Post-Festival Blues: Things to Remember

Post-Festival Blues_Things to Remember

 

Diwali festivities are over.

It’s a New Year for some, a new week, a new day.

The thing with festivals in India, especially the ones like Diwali is that the preparations begin from weeks before. Festivities are in the air even before the actual festival. Even in the workplace, Diwali begins to act like a marker on the timeline.

“We will do this project post-Diwali.”

“I want to place this candidate before Diwali.”

Offices are decked up. So are the streets, shops and homes. Even if you didn’t take a holiday for the festival, there might be a certain sense of “return to normalcy.” Everything around you is now back to how it was before. Offices, streets, shops and homes were decked up.

Festivals are preceded and succeeded by more festivals. In-between, we have this period.

It’s not easy for the eyes and ears to miss the festive spirit. And it’s not easy too, for the eyes and ears to get used to the absence of that same festive spirit afterwards.

It is very easy to get post-festival blues or post-festival withdrawal syndrome at this point.

What can we do about it?

Here are some tricks to keep your mood and motivation levels up.

 

Routine:

Getting back to your ‘mundane’ routine might actually be a blessing in disguise! Let us think talk about it.

Meeting and greeting of family and friends, pouring in of unexpected guests, travelling- solo or with our loved ones- could be psychologically invigorating but physically tiring. Sleep cycles often suffer during these times. The pleasantness of such interactions doesn’t bring the tiredness to notice.

The need to get back to work, coupled with this tiredness will ensure you sleep on time, and thus regain the freshness you might have lost over the past few days.

 

Find the Rhythm:

Now is a great time to establish a work-rhythm. With the back to back festivities of Navratri/Pujo and Diwali coming to a halt, it would have been difficult to maintain a certain sense of continuity: one step, and there would have been a holiday!

Processes would have been deferred, and in some cases left hanging.

Documents would have been left unsigned.

Now is the time to clear up all that, and push the processes towards the next step. Holidays often bring with them a certain stagnancy.

A sense of rhythm and dynamism is a big plus-point when there aren’t many major breaks on the horizon for the next couple of months.

The rhythm lets you work well, thus brings you the due rewards. This is a perception which can help us go a long way, with our productivity and motivation levels.

The end of a festive break also means you wouldn’t have to balance work and festivities, thus bringing the focus levels up.

 

The Double Whammy:

Sure, winter is approaching and you have noticed how days are so short now. It’s often dark outside by the time you leave the office.

But this is the perfect season to get outdoors! It’s not freezing, nor there is the frying heat. Planning outings over the weekend, evening walks, a well-charted workout etc. would not only give you something to look forward to, but also make you active. A healthy body means a healthy mind and vice versa. And thus better levels of motivation, hence better productivity.

 

It is important to maintain a positive attitude. We feel the festivals are a break from our routine  because they are not our routine: it is important to understand this binary, because it helps one appreciate everything, right from why we work to why we celebrate.

We laughed along with the festivities and the break. Now is a great time to smile at the mundane and the routine.