You can work formally with someone or some group and yet not
accomplish anything because the rapport and credibility
that informal contact brings is missing.
The system works through personalities. You need to talk with
people on all levels face to face, not merely through formal channels.
People will be more willing to listen and to send information
to you because they know you on a first-name basis and feel you
understand their views.
Informal communication also helps to:
Make it a point to provide opportunities for informal discussions.
Get core team members involved with
other groups on an informal basis. Attend meetings with organizations--people
will probably appreciate your efforts. (They may kid you a little,
but this also establishes rapport.) Have meals with representatives
from different groups or adjourn to a restaurant after a formal
meeting.
If your heart isn't in going to Trout Unlimited meetings or
getting to know people informally, find a way that you can interact
or let those who want to do so. An insincere gesture may be worse
than no gesture at all.
Informal contact can help even in confrontational
situations:
- You remove the battle gear. This allows participants to
let down their guard far enough to see that personal views may
not be that far apart after all.
You can be seen as a human being
. This provides a way to respect each other's viewpoints.
|