Working Up

by Dwayne Phillips

I’m all for brief meetings, but sometimes we walk away too soon.

I’m an engineer. I work with engineers and scientists. You know, insert-you-favorite-derogatory-word-here’s.

We don’t concentrate on social skills. When we talk, and we admit that we have to talk with another human now and then, we state the facts, decide, and move. The conversation is over. We walk away. The shorter, the better. Right?

Not always. Sometimes, in our zeal to be efficient (or is it a zeal to not talk to another person?) we end the conversation and go. Maybe we didn’t cover all the details, but we both understood the gist, and that is all we needed. We will work out the details on our own. Right? I mean, we’re really smart.

Hint to us all STEM persons: pause a moment or two. Ask that question. Allow the others to ask that question. Consider that possibility that you don’t have all the information you need. It is possible.