Newsletter #10: Are Italians more fun?

Not too long ago, I had a white paper project. A revision job. It came to me, jam-packed with information and technical specs but honestly, I couldn’t tell if whoever put it together knew nothing or everything about the subject.

It was related to digital transformation on the production line, so I certainly didn’t know anything about it.

Trouble was, after I read the first draft, I still didn’t. And the white paper was for c-level types who would know why digital transformation on the production line is good for business but wouldn’t necessarily understand the techie nuts and bolts.

Anyhoo, after much research, sweating and untangling paragraphs, I re-wrote that paper. I’m not too proud to tell you it taxed my brainpower.

Then came the review. With [I’ll call him] Archie—the technical expert who put the whole thing together.

Reviews can be tricky. The revisionist (me) can come off as snooty which can easily put the visionary creative on the defensive. So, I wanted to get us on the same team—fast.

“Archie, lots of great content here and the changes I made were about adding context so someone who isn’t a technical expert can understand the backstory and the digital transformation process at a high level.”

Done. Disaster avoided and we moved on to a page-by-page content review.

About half an hour later Archie says to me, “We’re not even yelling over these edits. I was on a call with Italians earlier today, we were disagreeing and a lot of raised voices.”

In other words, my revision session was boring. I’m no spicy meatball, hot tamale fireball.

But I still disagreed with Archie when necessary. I was just way less fun about it than the Italians.

This got me thinking about how to disagree and express dissent while cultivating a positive relationship at work or otherwise.

Because this is an extremely useful skill. And organizations need people who disrupt groupthink.

Here are four ways we can disagree with the pizazz of Archie’s Italians

Be clear about the purpose – Put everyone on the same page at the beginning and go back to it as required. Like, “We’re trying to [xxx] for [xxx] because [xxx]. How does what we’re talking about now line up to that?”

Don’t take things personally – So many problems get started by hurt feelings. I learned this the hard way, but that’s another story. As Don Miguel Ruiz said in The Four Agreements, “Whatever happens around you, don't take it personally ... Nothing other people do is because of you. It is because of themselves.”

Don’t be a jerk – I’m sure you wouldn’t intentionally but … sometimes it slips out. When my inner jerk surfaces, I think of this ruling from Miss Manners: it’s rude to tell other people they’re rude. Reorienting myself puts the jerk away (most times).

Have some fun – Pretty soon after Archie started talking, he said he’s a geek and that gave me some leeway to have a little fun. We connected about the chasm between our specialities and had a few laughs.

You may be thinking, “But isn’t it bad to yell at work? HR doesn’t like that.” Probably yelling is unhelpful in many situations.

But having a spirited conversation that involves disagreement and raised voices … that’s a whole different vibe if you keep relationships front and centre. Like Archie’s Italians.

So, are Italians more fun? I suppose so.

Until next time, keep on truckin’,

Andrea

**********The quote of the month**********

If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as a Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, 'Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.’

― Martin Luther King Jr.

**********Marketing tip of the month**********

3 ways to use LinkedIn more effectively

LinkedIn helps you connect you and your business to other businesses. If you’re on LinkedIn, you might as well be strategic about it.

• Give people what they want by posting articles, thoughts and opinions relevant to your audience.

• Use hashtags to help the right audience see your posts.

• Try text-only posts which LinkedIn seems to prefer as they keep people ON Linked in, instead of sending them away.

Need 5 more ways? Check out the full article linked in the source.

Source: PR Daily

**********Good vibes**********

Miley Cyrus does these backyard sessions where she sings her favourite classics, sometimes with guests. This gal can belt it out and bring me to tears. Here’s a 13-song playlist from those backyard sessions that may change what you think you knew about Miley Cyrus.

Includes Jolene (written by Miley’s godmother, Dolly Parton), Look what they’ve done to my song, Happy together and 50 ways to leave your lover.

**********My 60-second commercial**********

I'm an executive ghostwriter, specializing in benefits, leadership coaching, corporate wellness and employee assistance programs (EAPs).

I work with executives and executive coaches who have big hearts, are driven to help others and never open a conversation they're not willing to close.

My clients are straightforward, ambitious, humble, hilarious and I never have to wonder what they're thinking because they say what they mean and mean what they say.

If you're a tough-love executive or executive coach who would benefit from the kind of work I do, please get in touch:

andrea@redsailwriters.com | 647-502-3187 | ca.linkedin.com/in/andreabassett

Let's talk about these thought leadership projects in 2021:

• Newsletters | White papers + e-books | Ghostwritten articles

• Workbooks to supplement corporate training

• Business book ghostwriting (fall 2021, early 2022)