Think Before You Press Send

Kekich Credo #94 - For each important action you take, ask yourself if you would be embarrassed if it were published. It takes a lifetime of effort to build a good reputation but only a moment of stupidity to destroy it.

Your reputation is the opinion that people have about how good you are. It is a measure of your influence.  A person who has a good reputation is definitely selected for better jobs and for taking up leadership positions. Your reputation can determine your future opportunities.  Others’ perception of you precedes you and you may not even be given an opportunity if your reputation has negative connotations.   

This credo statement is telling you to think before you speak.  Before you press the send button in an email or post a comment on social media, ask yourself if you would be embarrassed if it were published. 

When you don’t think before you speak or post something, you are more likely to make badly informed statements.  This will reduce your credibility and will hurt someone by ‘putting your foot in your mouth.’ Take the time to consider what words you will use and what those words will mean to another person. How will other people feel about what you are saying?

You won’t get it right every time and making mistakes is part of learning and growing. But if you pause before you act and press that send button you can avoid making an impulsive action that could ruin your reputation.  Make sure your actions have a purpose, are appropriate, are understood, contribute to success, and echo guiding principles.

Thinking before you speak is an important skill to master.  Decide if what you have to say is True, Helpful, Inspiring, Necessary, or Kind. Are you sure you want to send that email or text? Take a moment and think before you hit the send button.  Here are some tips that will help you to avoid sender’s remorse and help you to become an effective communicator and leader.  

1. 1. Don’t say anything online that you would not say to someone face-to-face. Before you hit the send button, ask yourself what is the goal of this message?  

   2. Determine if this post or email is the right format to communicate your message. If you send a long, drawn-out email that is full of emotion, it may be better, faster and more effective to communicate face-to-face or by phone.

   3.  If emotion is involved when you are writing the email or post, save it as a draft to re-read later before you hit send.  When you re-read after the heat of the emotion passes, you can objectively ask if this message is True, Helpful, Inspiring, Necessary, or Kind.  [I have started writing my posts for this daily content challenge the night before and then re-read and adjust it before posting it each morning.]
   4. Check the recipients of your message and restrict the number of people you copy. The more people who receive a copy of your emails, the more likely they are to think that you cannot resolve your differences with one-on-one or team communication. 
   5. Don’t over emphasize.  When you use ALL CAPS in a large font with bold and many exclamation points, it makes it appear that you cannot control your emotions.  
   6.  Ask yourself, does this email or post even need to be sent?  Sometimes remaining silent may be the best strategy in successfully achieving your goals.   
   7.  Ask yourself, does this message align with your values?  This question can save a lot of grief and loss of credibility and your good reputation.

Would you be embarrassed if it were published?  Think before you press that button.  Ask yourself if it is True, Helpful, Inspiring, Necessary and Kind.  

# living life abundantly   # published author   # travelling tuesdays