Show, not tell.
Progress feels more real when you're holding it in your hand.
When the customer shows up to a construction site, does an honest foreman keep them occupied in the parking lot to just talk about progress made?
No. “Let’s take a walk and I’ll show you.”
In digital industries and knowledge work, it’s work making our work visible. We spend so much energy trying to quantify and qualify progress, with good intentions. In reality, so much is lost in translation as we communicate about the work.
It’s also tempting to hide behind the ambiguity of soft updates and flexible interpretations. Words can have multiple meanings and sometimes come up empty. Actions are more concrete. You’ve either done something, or you haven’t.
When communicating about our work, everyone benefits when we choose to show, not tell.
Show a newly released software feature in action with a real world example. Don’t tell your users how much they’ll love it.
Show your discarded drafts and invite others to appreciate your design process. Don’t tell them to take your word for it.
Show collaborators your calendar and and invite them to help you make time. Don’t tell people how busy you are.
Show your boss the list and ask them to help you prioritize. Don’t tell them you’re overloaded.
Show stakeholders the obstacles you’ve encountered and invite them to help evaluate tradeoffs. Don’t tell people the project is late.
Show your attention to a customer issue and actually solve it. Don’t tell me you how much you care.
Show impact.
Show scale.
Show emotion.
Show setbacks.
Show data.
Show effort.
Show the mess.
Show reality, and share clarity on where we are now — giving us the opportunity to move forward together.