Today,everyone is under a lot of stress.The economy is still not great,our graduates cannot find jobs, weather is unpredictable, terrorism continues, government is prying into our personal data and we are working harder and making less. Yes,we are also tethered to those cell phones, smart phones and pads.We need to be connected 24/7. Now we can spend time in another blog rant talking about stress and how to address it. Here I want to talk about communications:
We all know how good it feels when someone angers you or verbally attacks you and you tell them to go F themselves. It is instant gratification but temporary and with potential adverse side effects. However,such a response is classless, unprofessional and something that anyone can do. Set yourself apart and be the smarter person. I have spent the past 26 years verbally sparring for a living. Nothing works better than receiving an angry, raunchy personal attack and responding with the Queen's English. It is professional, appropriate and burns their butts! -- sorry for the inappropriate language.
I received a letter response from someone recently to a professional and informative letter and the responder told me to take the letter and "shove it" with a carbon copy to my secretary. This was done by email. Professional response, in part:..."However,anyone who tells me to shove my letter is not deserving of a response until I receive an apology. Thank you." More nonsense came back and hence silence from me. You cannot dignify such Neanderthal behavior. They are only looking for a fight. Don't give into it. It's simply unproductive, stress inducing and not becoming or professional. It shuts it down and in the eyes of the intelligent, the informed, the law -- you are the smarter and better person!