The "Black Sheep" Way of Answering Inquiries from Managers
This is what i will be discussing in my Technical Communication class.
We can pick a topic that is familiar to us. Since i have been teaching my daughter to read I became really familiar with nursery rhymes. I am going to take my classmates all the way back to nursery.
Baa, baa, black sheep,
Have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir,
Three bags full.
One for the master,
One for the dame,
And one for the little boy
Who lives down the lane.
Introduction
Before we discuss the things that we can learn from the black sheep, we need background to relate this simple nursery rhyme to a management context.
Who is asking the question “Have you any wool?” We know that it is not the “Master” because later on the sheep said “One for the master” which implies somebody other than the “Master” is asking the question. The sheep referred to the one asking the question “Sir” which is acknowledging the authority of the one asking to ask the question. We can deduct that the one asking the question is somebody who handles the sheep because the one asking is expecting “wool” from the sheep. So, it is somebody who manages the wool output of the sheep.
3 points how to answer like the “Black Sheep”
1. Be polite and courteous
“Yes Sir, Yes Sir”
The sheep acknowledges the authority of the one who is asking “Have you any wool?”. We need to acknowledge the position of authority of our managers just by being polite when they inquire about something from us. A simple greeting or “Hi” in our response to their question will do
2. Be accurate
“Three bags full”
The sheep knows ahead of time how many bags it has. If the sheep did not know then the line would be “1,2,3..Three bags full”. Measure accurately and know ahead of time the output that is expected of you. It helps to do this regularly weekly or daily perhaps so that when you are asked you know where you are. Sample: “I have completed 60% of the tasks and 40% of the tasks remains. I have completed 5 out of 10 tasks”
3. Be specific
“One for the master”
Being specific gives a fine point of understanding to the one asking the question. The sheep specified whom the three bags are for. We need to specify what the output of our tasks achieves . Sample : “I have completed the Financial report. I spent 8 hours creating the report. The report will help the accountants decide our budget.”
Conclusion:
If we apply the three points that we learn from the black sheep when we respond to any inquiry from our manager, we prevent them from asking us again. The rhyme ended after the sheep responded. If the sheep’s respond was not enough then the nursery rhyme should have gone like this:
Baa, baa, black sheep,
Have you any wool?
Yes sir, Yes sir.
Baa, baa, black sheep how many bags?
Three bags full.
Baa, baa black sheep who are they for?
One for the master,
One for the dame,
And one for the little boy
Who lives down the lane.
We can pick a topic that is familiar to us. Since i have been teaching my daughter to read I became really familiar with nursery rhymes. I am going to take my classmates all the way back to nursery.
Baa, baa, black sheep,
Have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir,
Three bags full.
One for the master,
One for the dame,
And one for the little boy
Who lives down the lane.
Introduction
Before we discuss the things that we can learn from the black sheep, we need background to relate this simple nursery rhyme to a management context.
Who is asking the question “Have you any wool?” We know that it is not the “Master” because later on the sheep said “One for the master” which implies somebody other than the “Master” is asking the question. The sheep referred to the one asking the question “Sir” which is acknowledging the authority of the one asking to ask the question. We can deduct that the one asking the question is somebody who handles the sheep because the one asking is expecting “wool” from the sheep. So, it is somebody who manages the wool output of the sheep.
3 points how to answer like the “Black Sheep”
1. Be polite and courteous
“Yes Sir, Yes Sir”
The sheep acknowledges the authority of the one who is asking “Have you any wool?”. We need to acknowledge the position of authority of our managers just by being polite when they inquire about something from us. A simple greeting or “Hi” in our response to their question will do
2. Be accurate
“Three bags full”
The sheep knows ahead of time how many bags it has. If the sheep did not know then the line would be “1,2,3..Three bags full”. Measure accurately and know ahead of time the output that is expected of you. It helps to do this regularly weekly or daily perhaps so that when you are asked you know where you are. Sample: “I have completed 60% of the tasks and 40% of the tasks remains. I have completed 5 out of 10 tasks”
3. Be specific
“One for the master”
Being specific gives a fine point of understanding to the one asking the question. The sheep specified whom the three bags are for. We need to specify what the output of our tasks achieves . Sample : “I have completed the Financial report. I spent 8 hours creating the report. The report will help the accountants decide our budget.”
Conclusion:
If we apply the three points that we learn from the black sheep when we respond to any inquiry from our manager, we prevent them from asking us again. The rhyme ended after the sheep responded. If the sheep’s respond was not enough then the nursery rhyme should have gone like this:
Baa, baa, black sheep,
Have you any wool?
Yes sir, Yes sir.
Baa, baa, black sheep how many bags?
Three bags full.
Baa, baa black sheep who are they for?
One for the master,
One for the dame,
And one for the little boy
Who lives down the lane.
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