--- james at communistbanker.com wrote:
> This list is an interesting
> example of how hard remote communication can be. Some posts are
> grossly rude to
> other participants. I suspect that this is not because the
> respondents
> are rude people, but because it's easy to forget that there is a
> person
> at the end of the e-mail.
I never cease to be amazed at how many misunderstandings at work evolve out of email communications that were interpreted to have critical, patronizing or rude comments. Very often the interpretations are not what the author intended at all, and very often the offended person does not confront the sender of the email to clarify the message. Instead, the slight remains a quiet but festering irritant, and cooperation between the two emailing parties erodes. We've had directives at the law firms I've worked at towards staff and attorneys alike to phone or get off the widening arse and go visit the person you are communicating with whenever possible. The result is usually better workproduct on first draft and fewer employee grumbles.
However, most of what we do now - especially considering volume and client demands - couldn't be done without email and the speed and accessability it offers. The catch is finding the best balance.
- Deborah
=====
" How come people always flip and think they're Jesus? Why not Buddha? Particularly in America, where more people resemble Buddha than Jesus. 'Ah'm BUDDHA!' 'You're Bubba!' 'Ah'm Buddha now..All I gotta do is change 3 letters on ma belt...' " - Bill Hicks