Less Chatter, More Matter: The Communications Podcast

#65 What in the world is happening? How to communicate in a world of upheaval

• Season 1 • Episode 65

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How do you communicate about the tough topics?

More importantly, in a world of upheaval and an ongoing barrage of information and news - how do you communicate about the important things in a meaningful way, with a positive outcome?

In this week's episode of the Less Chatter, More Matter podcast, we dive head first into exactly this; how to navigate the complexities of a world in upheaval, and what you can do to communicate it in a way that is empathetic, and impactful, in all the right ways.

Tune in to learn all about it.

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Mel:

Hi, and welcome to Less Chatter, More Matter, a podcast about all things communication without the waffle. I'm your host, Mel Loy, and in this show, I will give you short, punchy, practical communication tips and insights. You can start using in your communication practices right away. I'm a former corporate communication executive who happily took a redundancy, started my own business and never looked back. These days I use my 20 plus years of experience to help guide organisations of all shapes and sizes in how to communicate more effectively. I'm wife to Michael, cat mum to Cookie, aunty to 12 nieces and nephews, a yoga teacher, and a group fitness fanatic. I promise these episodes will always be short, sharp, and helpful, so let's get amongst it. Hey there friend and welcome to another episode of the podcast. It is very wonderful to have you tuning in today. And if nobody has told you yet, you are doing amazing. So today's episode is a little different because we are living in a time where it is impossible to ignore all the crappy things that are going on. There's a war in Ukraine and in Palestine. There's piracy off the coast of Africa. There is... Disasters left, right and center, mass killings, the cost of living crisis, growing population of people who are homeless, a youth mental health crisis, you name it, we've got it. And every day when you turn on the news, it is impossible to ignore that life is just a bit shit for many people right now. And the challenge is we tend to be drawn to the negative. It's called the negativity bias. There was research undertaken in the US, but with participants from 17 other countries, so cross cultural. And they measured how people responded physiologically to positive or negative news. The researchers found that negative news provoked stronger physiological reactions and garnered more attention than positive or neutral news on average. So essentially, this creates a market for the news media. The people who consume news tend to be drawn to negative stories more than the positive ones and the media need to sell advertising. So they're going to do that. And it's also likely that journalists themselves operate with this unconscious negative bias as well. And so they're naturally more drawn to report on negative stories. So when your job is to communicate within an organisation or with external stakeholders, and it's impossible to ignore the bad news that is the elephant in the room, what can you do? That's what we're going to tackle today. How to communicate about stuff with your audiences, because the truth is it's not just up to communicators to communicate these things. Because the truth is it's not just up to professional communicators to craft these messages. It's up to leaders, CEOs, teachers, parents, and everyone else to communicate about these events to your own audiences. It's important to know how to talk about these things too, because they do impact people's wellbeing, especially if they're very close to home or very personal in some way. Not only that, these events can trigger certain emotions or memories in people that can be quite damaging and not talking about these events or talking about them in a really incoherent or unsympathetic way can be really damaging to employee morale. It can erode trust in your brand, in leadership, and in general, just leave people more disengaged. And that of course has ongoing impacts on your ability to retain great talent and great people and customers. Now, to be clear, I am not a psychologist, so I'm not going to talk about things like how to talk to children about horrific events, for example. That is so much better left to the experts. So I'm going to keep in my lane. I'm going to keep in the scope of what I know best. And that is how to communicate about these events with employees and key stakeholders. So I'm going to share six things you should do or think about when you're working out how, when, and even if you should talk about tragic events happening in the world while you're in the workplace. The first step is, well, it tackles that question of whether or not you should or should not say anything. And the answer is you can't ignore the elephant in the room. Sometimes to say nothing gives the impression that you don't care or you're willfully sticking your head in the sand. Saying nothing can actually say a lot. Many of these recent events are just simply too close to home to ignore and they're too important to ignore as well. Especially if there are flow and effects to your business like supply chain issues, for example. Talking about these issues also shows that you have your finger on the pulse as a leader and you're aware of how these events can impact your employees, your customers, and other stakeholders. Remember, we work with humans, not robots and humans have feelings and emotions. Good leaders acknowledge that and know they need to communicate because of that. So that's the first thing don't ignore it because you can't. So you've decided to say something. How do you do that? So the next point is. Stick to the facts. This means that if you're going to talk about these events publicly, either internally or externally, or both, make sure you've got verified, credible sources of information. The last thing you want is to be hauled over the coals because you've shared something that's turned out to be inaccurate or just plain wrong. So check your sources, but also make sure you only stick with what you know. It's like the crisis comms principles. We don't speculate or make assertions about what's happened, why, or what could happen. Just stick with what you know. Now, sticking to the facts is important, but that doesn't mean we just reel off a list of facts, which brings us to the next point, which is we must show empathy. Remember, you have human beings in your audience. And empathy is absolutely key to building and maintaining trusting relationships. So even if you're not feeling affected by bad news, that doesn't mean that others aren't. You may even be thinking, why on earth is this person banging on about this event so much? What a drama queen. But there's often reasons why something triggers big emotions in some people. It could be they've been in similar situations themselves before and this has stirred up memories. Maybe it's just, they've been under a lot of stress elsewhere in their lives and this was the last straw. Or maybe it's just, hey, there's so much bad news going on. They're feeling pretty overwhelmed, which is so understandable. Or it could be anything else altogether. The point is, approach people's feelings with curiosity, and in turn you'll be able to show empathy. And in our communication, showing empathy means things like really listening to people's thoughts and fears, acknowledging those feelings, letting people know it's okay to have those feelings, etc. It's that psychological safety. And again, leaders should be doing that anyway. But that's another story. All right. So you've decided to say something, you're sticking to the facts and you're doing it with empathy. A couple of other things to remember include tip number four, avoid weighing in on a conflict or picking a side, unless it's a very clear position for your business to take. So for example, the Palestine Israeli conflict going on right now. If you're an organisation in Australia that is owned by people of Palestinian heritage and works closely with the Palestinian community in Australia, then it makes sense that you would take a position on this conflict. But if you're the Commonwealth Bank, for example, it really doesn't make a whole lot of sense that you would put your weight behind one side or another. Rather, the message is probably more about denouncing violence and conflict altogether and acknowledging the impact it has on many communities. Now, I know there's going to be people who say, well, actually these big businesses should be advocating in a certain way. It's not the point of today's episodes. I'm just putting that out there. It's just an example. Uh, other organisations like nonprofits, such as Medicine Sans Frontieres, for example, uh, also known as Doctors Without Borders, they want to remain apolitical. They kind of have to be because otherwise they risk not gaining access to the areas where they're most needed. So it's likely that their messaging around these issues would focus more on the impact of war on people rather than taking an overt. point of view either way. So that's the fourth point. Avoid weighing in on the issue if it doesn't make sense for you to pick a side, but also be clear on whatever position you decide to take. The fifth tip is to remember to offer support to those who need it. So for the most part, I know leaders are rarely also psychologists or counselors. So we need to be able to refer people on for professional support where it's required. Now, you know, I've worked as a group fitness instructor and a personal trainer, and it's very clear. You stick within your scope of practice. You're not a physiotherapist. You're not a doctor. You're not a nutritionist or a dietitian. You stick within your scope of practice. And this is the same for leaders everywhere. If you're not a psychologist or a counsellor, refer on. Now, that doesn't mean that you don't show empathy or you don't listen. Of course you do. You do both of those things. But then, maybe suggest that people seek further support. So, for example, you could say something like, I really think you'd benefit from talking to someone who can help you work through these feelings and come up with some strategies to help. And most organisations of a decent size have employee support programs set up. And these usually include some free psychology sessions for the employee, sometimes also their immediate family. There may also be different types of leave available that people can take. So it's important that in these comms you make these services very clearly known. Also, don't forget, you can also include contact details for other credible organisations who can provide advice and support like Reach Out or Beyond Blue or Headspace, for example. I've included a couple of links in the show notes to some of these services and specifically the information they provide around how to talk about these current events. So it's worth having a look at how they word that in the language that they use. Okay, the final tip is this. Share the positive news too! The media cycle and our negativity bias makes it easy to forget that there's also a lot of good happening in the world. And if we only acknowledge the bad in our communications, then we play into that narrative too. So yes, acknowledge issues if they're close to home or have an impact in some way, but also make sure you're sharing some of the good news regularly as well. At the ABC News here in Australia, for example, They've recognized the need to share good news and they usually often do, I think it's once or twice a week at the moment, a wrap up of good news stories and share that by their social media. They also have a good news section on their website, which is a great source of stories you could be sharing with your stakeholders too. And I've included a link to that in the show notes as well. Positivity breeds positivity. So while there are times where you do need to address the shitty things that are happening in the world, if that's the only world news you ever address, That's not helpful for morale. So think about how you could incorporate sharing some of the good news of the world into your comms too, and maybe make a few more people smile. Alrighty, we're at the tail end of the episode. So let's do a quick recap. Today, we talked about how to talk about the bad news that's happening in our worlds and across the world in general, and how you do that in a work context. And I shared six tips on how to approach it. Number one. Don't ignore it. Remember that sometimes saying nothing says a lot and it's not always saying something good. Acknowledge that elephant in the room. Number two is stick to the facts and get your info from credible sources and stick to only what you know. No speculations or assertions or assumptions on what it all might mean. Number three, show empathy. This means really listening to people, acknowledging their thoughts and feelings, and just genuinely showing you care. This builds trust, which helps strengthen relationships. And we all know relationships are key to workplace wellbeing. Number four, avoid weighing in on the conflict, unless it makes sense for your organisation to take a particular stance, but be clear on your position, either way. Number five, offer support. So always include options for people to seek out professional help in a way that they feel most comfortable with, whether that's through your employee support program or through other organisations. And number six, share the positive news too. Don't play into this news cycle of doom and gloom. There's a lot of good things happening in the world and that deserves air time. It's good to balance the narrative and help make people smile. Okay, folks, that is all for today's episode, so make sure you check out those links I've talked about. They're in the show notes and there's some good resources there and some good news. You can also keep learning from me for free by signing up to my mailing list. The link is in the notes for that. Every fortnight I sent out an update packed with comms related news resources from around the globe and upcoming events. So you don't want to miss that. And we update the blog on the website every week. And of course you can follow HeyMelComms and myself on LinkedIn. I share loads of tips and insights on there every week. In the meantime, as per usual, if you have any topics you'd love me to cover, please get in touch and I will see you again next week for a fresh episode of Less Chatter, More Matter. Keep doing amazing things and bye for now.