Often times when working for any industry or organization we are required to communicate at least as the bare minimum. Although our personalities make a difference on how we communicate, we can form different styles of communication from this as well. There is often a sense an urgency needed to build rapport with our colleagues inside and outside of work. This takes persistence and a willingness to pay attention. The importance of looking outside ourselves and not project what we think is empathic, sometimes it matters that we consider other perspectives so we can have a better vision of the world.

Let us consider working in a team that owns a lemonade stand. You have a partner or partners that each have ideas about how the business should run. Questions come up, like how to earn the most profit, how to share the earnings, and how to keep the business alive. We have to use a style of communication that is acceptable to the group, but also gets your point across. Everyone has a different belief system at times or different values, and we want to communicate our ideas for the lemonade stands success. Generally, in this case, I think the idea is not to take things too personally so everyone can be objective about how to serve the best lemonade. Learning to add a little flavor to what you’re trying to say without stepping on anyone’s toes’ is almost an art form at the least, and we should try our best to respect everyone’s opinions and ideas.

Now let’s mention urgency. This can be subjective as well, as fast is not always good if it does not deliver quality. The old saying goes, that we should think before we talk. Again, we are all human and sometimes urgency may come from a place of validation not necessarily empathy. Urgency is important into maintaining a steady pace, but it also helps to be analytical about our meanings and best design/engineer words to best suit the situation and/or people. Sometimes a lack of urgency could mean a lack of respect of the success of the group or business, in the case of the lemonade stand, we can’t wait until midday to broadcast that we ran out lemons for lemonade. We need to get the message across that if we are running short of lemons midday of the summer heat, we could lose out on prime customers the really need the hydration. Logically, we need to provide enough lemons, or we risk losing are ability to serve customers.

Finally, in one short thought, a good balance of communication and urgency is substantial in making a difference in an organization, team or other aspects of group goals.