I thought I would post a comment on communications. For those in HR who read my blog, you will undoubtedly understand the meaning of clear and concise communications. So I thought I would tell a story on how potentially unclear communications can ruin a friendship or change the course of a relationship, be it at work or in your personal life.
A friend of mine decided to move to a new location where an old friend of his lived. They were best of friends in college and each working in different fields. My friend decided to pull up stakes where he currently lived to move to the town where his friend lived. His friend said he could move in with him until he got settled and found a job. What a great thing.
He moved in and about a month later his friend said, why don't we just be roommates and split the rent. Even better right? So to top it off, my friend got a job within a a month and started work. They had a great time doing things together in their off time until 1 day my friends friend said, " I think you should find your own place". This isn't working out. What a surprise to my friend. Hurt was not the word for his feelings and especially when his friend said "find your own place".
You can imagine the wedge that is now between these two people. one feeling like he is getting thrown out, and the other feeling his best friend really didn't hear what he said initially when he moved in. You can figure this complex issue out but the moral of the story and especially for HR practitioners is "make sure your communications is clear, concise and that people understand at the outset what you mean". If not, you will have many problems with your constituents.
