I recently listened to the LinkedUp podcast titled The Science of Writing for Busy People featuring Todd Rogers as the guest. As a behavioral scientist and professor from Harvard, he shared many strategies for keeping communication succinct in order to be effective. It was interesting to hear the science and data behind how certain communication decisions should be made.
It can sometimes be very difficult to write in a concise format. Rogers shared a quote originally attributed to French mathematician and philosopher Blaise Pascal, which when translated, equates to the idea that “I would have written a shorter letter if I had more time.” We’ve all been the unfortunate recipient of communication that was too long to read. What’s interesting is that Rogers takes a firm stance in that concise communication is kind and respectful to the reader because it saves them time.
We don’t often equate our kindness level to the length of a letter sent to parents, but maybe we should. As a parent AND educator, I know that my time is valuable, and so now, I’ll try to be more cognizant of how respectful my messages are when I send them.
Check out the episode and think more about how you communicate!
Rich
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