Communication Received

When receiving communication from other team members, always assume the positive.

It is easy to get busy and jump to conclusions about a message we receive, especially if it is via email. However, when you assume individuals are communicating with the office and with your best interests at heart, you decrease the chance of a negative situation arising. For example, a co-worker informs you that you forgot to clean an instrument or you scheduled a patient on top of another. It may be easy to become defensive in an attempt to explain yourself. However, the other way to think about things is that your colleague wants you to be the best you can be and therefore, does not want you to continue to make errors.  

I work as a mentor for special education teachers. A few days ago the team decided that a different student needed the support of an IA. I was not going to see this individual in person for a few days. So, I informed the instructional assistant of the change via email. I later received a phone call about how upset this individual had become due to this change.

She did not assume the positive in my email. She believed that we were going to detach her from her relationship with her student. However, in fact we were trying to provide support to another student that needed it while her student does not need support at that time. Miscommunications can easily happen when you are threatened and do not trust the individuals you work with. And when they think you are trying to hurt them instead of help them.

Take the time to explain and build relationships. I have often found that when someone assumes the negative it usually stems from a place of jealousy, anger or a mistrust in the relationship. Take the time to develop a more positive relationship with your co-workers in order to better communicate in the work place.  

Great teams take effort. Take time to work on your practice regularly to build quality communication and strengthen your results. For more information and to read other articles, please visit us at www.saltdpm.com.