Advice from Dad Still Pays Off

Praise in Public, Criticize in Private. This advice from my father has served me well when I have actually taken time to think before acting. Perhaps you heard something similar from your father or another mentor in your life. These words of wisdom could benefit you in a number of legal contexts.

Words travel faster today than ever before. With email, Facebook, Twitter, blogs, texts and other social and electronic media, your comments are out there for the world to see, or at least particular corners of the world. They can then be forwarded by others who then forward them to yet others and so on and so on and so on...

Business negotiations, employee management, customer relations and countless other areas of professional and personal life, many with legal implications, can be affected by comments that cannot be retrieved after you hit Send.

That is why Dad’s words are more important today than ever before. We all have seen replies to emails dressing down the original sender, sometimes after a few cocktails, sent to everyone that received the original message. Following Dad’s advice, hitting Send All is a mistake. The same is true of critical statements in blog postings, message boards, comments after online articles, etc. . . .

Whether you are dealing with employees, business partners, prospects, customers or the general public, your words will never haunt you if you remember Dad’s advice. Praise in Public, Criticize in Private. 

Comments

[Renee Radcliff SInclair]

This is great advice, thanks for the reminder!