@jacob This is a good plan for any asynchronous messageing system. Don't ever send anyone messages like this in texts, messages, DMs, in-game chat, or anything else that isn't physically meeting them in real space.

You wouldn't send someone an email saying "got a minute", so don't do that in anything even vaguely similar... even if you're asking if you can call/visit them right now, say that and say why.

@jacob Also, *never* just send a IM to someone at work with nothing more than "you there?" or similar. Just ask the question.

And if we don't work together closely, remind me who you are and the context from which you're approaching me.

Give me enough information to know if I need to context switch immediately, or if I can ask you to wait a little bit.

@jacob I totally agree with the subject matter of what you wrote.

But I did laugh because "mystery meat" conversations can go in any number of directions. 😀

@jacob My favorite example of this was a dude, early in "company IM client" culture, who refused to use punctuation.

He sent an IM once that said, "you have 5 minutes"

@jacob 💯

With my directs I always try and provide context within the same message.

ie no: Hey, got a sec

*2 min*

About x

Send it all in one people!

@jacob @seanmonstar and to any managers comparing this feeling of uncertainty with a direct report sending you a similar message: it’s not the same!

Your direct report can’t fire you, or put you on disciplinary action, or directly affect your merit increase or promotion possibilities.

@jacob in the absence of information, the human brain will assume the worst-case scenario.

Very useful for our small ancestors scurrying around in a forest; very annoying for us.

@jacob Great point, though I think this should apply beyond managers. I believe it's important to always give context or at least the general idea when interacting with someone, wherever possible. Communicating your goal properly is a crucial part of working together with others.

It reminds me of the ol' "No Hello" rule for chats: https://nohello.net/

@jacob A trillion times this. For everyone, though, not just managers.

As someone with anxiety, the “Hi.” on Teams can only mean you intend to travel back in time and murder my ancestors.

For the love of everything decent and holy, give a person some idea of what “Hi.” is about.

@jacob one of my favorite stories I tell people when I talk about my value of transparency.

I showed up at work and my boss asked me to join him for a “quick meeting to discuss upcoming projects” in which he announced I was being laid off. Gulp.