Saving Time by Improving Requests

A while back, I ran into a blog post on communication that reminded me of a mistake I once made, so I flagged it for a re-read. Its title is apt, but the following paragraph sums up the problem, and it isn't an issue solely between tiers of authority on the job:

For how long? (Image by Nick Fewings, via Unsplash, license.)

Imprecise asks from managers and leaders cause a disproportionate amount of turmoil and wheel-spinning. To combat this, leaders should be very precise with the amount of time investment they're asking for when they ask for things. A little bit of awkward precision up front can save major headaches down the line.

One example of such "awkward precision" is:

Clarify the expected time investment: "Please look into this for me. Do not, DO NOT, spend more than 20 minutes on this. Please come back with whatever you have after 20 minutes."

I love that, and greatly appreciate the post going on to remind the reader that there are ways to be sure of getting it:

Ask for how much time they think is appropriate. "Are you expecting something super thorough, like multiple hours of effort, or a quick write up?"

Other tips are worth visiting the Stay SaaSy blog.

As they say, Don't assume everyone else knows what's going on.

Anyone who has had such difficulty knows that, at least once, they were missing part of the picture. So can anyone else.

-- CAV