In the workplace, too much information can be as dangerous as too little. Team members want to be included and privy to what is going on. They relish fast-breaking news and value understanding how the leader sees and makes judgments about the team, the future, and the work at hand.
An important reminder. In an attempt to be transparent, I too often strayed into oversharing as a leader, which sometimes sowed confusion and disillusion.
Good question. Part of my motivation was what you describe in your piece. In an attempt to be transparent and even vulnerable, I sometimes went too far, particularly when I saw how much those who worked for my more opaque peers were struggling. Another factor was that the organizations I was involved in were deeply dysfunctional with unstable and even malevolent leaders over me. No matter how hard you try, striving to protect your people while immersed in dysfunction will inevitably lead to poor decisions.
As for the decision process to prevent it, I could see by people’s reactions that I had gone too far in some cases. Sometimes people even told me plainly. In other cases, it was just self-reflection in quiet moments that wised me up. I will not say that I was always successful at reining myself in, though.
An important reminder. In an attempt to be transparent, I too often strayed into oversharing as a leader, which sometimes sowed confusion and disillusion.
Thanks, Jim. Interested to hear what typically motivated an overshare and what decision process you went thru to prevent it?
Good question. Part of my motivation was what you describe in your piece. In an attempt to be transparent and even vulnerable, I sometimes went too far, particularly when I saw how much those who worked for my more opaque peers were struggling. Another factor was that the organizations I was involved in were deeply dysfunctional with unstable and even malevolent leaders over me. No matter how hard you try, striving to protect your people while immersed in dysfunction will inevitably lead to poor decisions.
As for the decision process to prevent it, I could see by people’s reactions that I had gone too far in some cases. Sometimes people even told me plainly. In other cases, it was just self-reflection in quiet moments that wised me up. I will not say that I was always successful at reining myself in, though.
Do you think most examples of oversharing are noble attempts at transparency? Or is it people who don't know how to navigate confidentiality?