So far we’ve looked at making and finding lists. Now we’ll take it a step further and see what happens when we move lists from a solo activity to a social activity.
Think back to the last time you and your friends were trying to get together. Maybe someone suggested a lunch date and that sounded good, but where would you get lunch? Nobody is willing to make a decision. Some people don’t care, some people care a lot, and the next thing you know people have stopped responding to texts and email and you’re not even sure anymore if you’re still meeting.
Getting together is easy, figuring out what to do is a whole other matter entirely.
Now, what if you and your friends had, at some point earlier, compiled a list of your favorite places to eat, or a list of movies you wanted to watch or spots you were eager to visit together? Imagine how the scenario above would change. When the question of where to eat comes up there’s no debate. You pull out the list of restaurants the group wants to try and choose one.
Using lists to build a common ground for group decision making works wonders, saves time, and even helps relationships.
Social lists go beyond use with friends; you can leverage them with coworkers too. In the fast moving world of business, everyone is looking to make the most of their time, and there are few things more efficient for sharing useful information than a list.
Take email as an example. Probably one of the most common ways we communicate in the workplace. We tend to write like we talk. If we have a request it’s often buried amongst a couple other paragraphs of text. All of this writing does two things: it makes the email more work to read (and thus more likely to be ignored or put in the ‘deal with later’ pile) and it’s prone to not getting you what you want.
When our requests aren’t clear it’s easy for them to be delayed and put off until more clarification is provided.
The next time you send an email, ask yourself if you could turn it into a list. It will focus your request and prevent rambling in your message. It will also make your message easier to read and thus more likely to be dealt with faster. Finally, It spells out exactly what you need line by line and maximizes the odds you will get what you’re asking for. Even if it takes a little longer to structure the message, listification of your emails will ultimately save you time. You’ll also score points with colleagues since their lives will be better by no longer having to worry about deciphering your messages.
Another great use for lists in the office is for getting to know others better. Often when a new employee comes on or people move around on teams it can be hard for new relationships to form. One great solution is to compile a list of things about yourself. This can be where you went to school, how many kids or pets you have, or even hobbies you enjoy. Now when you find yourself on a new assignment or bringing on a new hire you can share your list or post it to your company profile and give others a quick snapshot about who you are.
This allows you to quickly share what matters with others and also provides an easy way for coworkers to break the ice when meeting for the first time. If they see you have two dogs, they can establish a common ground with you by sharing that they also have dogs. Lists like this help you connect with new people, express yourself, and ease company transitions.
In our next article, we’ll delve deeper into why lists shine for making decisions with friends.
Come Join Us on Gojurn!