Today sharing some gems from the Basecamp Guide to Internal Communication. Regular readers know I am a HUGE fan of Basecamp founders @DHH and @JasonFried, founders of Basecamp and passionate about sharing what they learn on the journey. This guide has 30 rules of thumb and many more gems and nuggets. I’ll pick out only three today, referencing my own writings along similar lines.
You can not not communicate. Not discussing the elephant in the room is communicating.
Rule of Thumb 1
So much that, as a coach, I could unpack here, but they’ve been very concise. Communicate, always. Say what needs to be said. This entire guide from Basecamp reminds me of teachings from Carrie Bedingfield on Clean Communications, see: “How clean are your communications?“
If you have to repeat yourself, you weren’t clear enough the first time.
Rule of Thumb 10
From: Repeat after me. Repeat your message : “If you feel sure you have over-communicated your message to your people to the point where they are bored of hearing it from you…. you are probably about halfway there.”. Also, see: “Repetition, repetition, repetition” 🙂
The end of the day has a way of convincing you what you’ve done is good, but the next morning has a way of telling you the truth. If you aren’t sure, sleep on it before saying it.
Rule of Thumb 18
So many times I have suggested to clients to “sleep on it”. This very much applies to communication, and also to solving problems, as the mind has a way of solving problems as you sleep. See: “Allow time before deciding” on how fixing a broken car taught me to “sleep on it”