John Mayor sang,
“Say what you need to say.” But, in
the context of an organization, you need to be careful before you say what you
need to say. You’ll have to consider:
- What you say.
- Whether what you say is important or not.
- When you say it.
- To whom you say.
- And, finally how you say it.
Everything you
speak about may not be all that important. Does a minor issue need to be voiced
out? Another important factor is timing. Perhaps you’re really freaked out
before undertaking a particular assignment. Should you voice out your fear at
the moment you’re afraid? Or should you wait until you’ve accomplished the
task. You could later tell your colleagues how afraid you really were. The next
important factor to consider is to whom you say. If you have a problem then normally
in an organization it’s the line manager. Voicing your concerns to every other
person is not the wisest thing to do. Finally, how you say what you have to say
makes a big difference. For example, if a person from another department asks
you for your help and you’re really busy then you can say, “No, I’m busy. I won’t help.” Or you can be more subtle and say, “I’d love to help you but my buckets are
full. So, I’m really sorry I can’t help you this time.”
Being a
professional means you learn the correct way of saying the right thing at the
right time to the right person and in a right way.
