Fractal Interests
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Communication

Planted 02023-03-10

Scales of culture

From The Culture Map by Erin Meyer

  1. Communicating: low-context vs. high-context
  2. Evaluating: direct negative feedback vs. indirect negative feedback
  3. Persuading: principles-first vs. applications first
  4. Leading: egalitarian vs. hierarchical
  5. Deciding: consensual vs. top-down
  6. Trusting: task-based vs. relationship-based
  7. Disagreeing: confrontational vs. avoids confrontation
  8. Scheduling: linear-time vs. flexible-time

Scales of communication culture

Good faith vs Bad faith

Good faith Bad faith
Humility and curiosity Hubris and lack of curiosity in opposing views
Update position based on new information Refuse changes in position based on new information
Disagreements welcomed; group learning valued Disagreements unwelcomed; consensus overstated
Steelman the position of others Strawman the position of others
Respectly disagree Disrespectfully disagree
Sufficient time given to open discussion Insufficient time given to open discussion
Use careful clarifications and evidence Avoid or omit careful clarifications and evidence
Attempt to find shared base realities and values No attempt to find shared base realities and values
Emergence of new positions, integrations, and nuance Emergence of stalemates, polarization, and simplifications

Wait vs Interrupt

  • Do not interrupt (vs) Interrupt when you understand
  • Speak briefly (vs) Speak until I interrupt
  • Use physical cues to indicate understanding and desire to speak (vs) Use physical cues to indicate when I should continue talking
  I interrupt I wait for you to finish
I let you interrupt The Church of Interruption The Meek
I will say my piece no matter what Barkers The Church of Strong Civility

Asynchronous first vs Synchronous first

  • Do not expect an immediate response (vs) Expect an immediate response
  • Respond on your own time (vs) Must be present to respond
  • Respond when it works best for you (vs) Everyone is tied to the same schedule

Reveal vs Infer

  • When you want something I trust you to ask for it (vs) When you want something I trust you will give me hints to notice and interpret.
  • If I make a request that doesn’t make sense to you, I trust you to refuse it (vs) I trust you to notice my hints to what I want and provide or offer it if possible.

Explicit vs Implicit

  • State what may be obvious, but is often not to everyone (vs) Holding back statement that seem obvious to you, but may not be obvious to everyone else
  • Focus on reducing ambiguity (vs) Do not focus on reducing ambiguity

Confidence level

For expressions of likelihood or probability, use one of the following sets of terms. Source: Intelligence Community Directives 203: Analytic Standards

Probability Term Synonym Percentage Range
almost no chance remote 01-05%
very unlikely highly improbable 05-20%
unlikely improbable (improbably) 20-45%
roughly even chance roughly even odds 45-55%
likely probable (probably) 55-80%
very likely highly probable 80-95%
almost certain(ly) nearly certain 95-99%

Note causes of uncertainty ( e.g., type, currency, and amount of information, knowledge gaps, and the nature of the issue) and explain how uncertainties affect analysis (e.g., to what degree and how a judgment depends on assumptions)

Scales of communication needs

From diátaxis

  • Acquisition vs Application
  • Action vs Cognition
need addressed in the user the documentation
learning tutorials acquires their craft informs action
goals how-to guides applies their craft informs action
information reference applies their craft informs cognition
understanding explanation acquires their craft informs cognition