Yesterday, I spoke about managed dissatisfaction. In communication it means meeting the basic threshold of adequacy without investing in the effort to truly connect, enlighten, or engage with the audience. It’s a calculated approach to do just enough, but not more.
That’s a choice, for example:
You can choose to provide just enough information to avoid misunderstandings. Or you can make an effort to ensure the information is easily digestible and engaging.
You can choose to respond to questions or concerns when raised. Or you can proactively clarify potential ambiguities and offer additional insights.
You can choose to slightly adjust the content based on the audience (like, say, changing the date in your slide template) but otherwise keep it generic. Or you can make it specific for this particular audience’s needs.
You can choose to engage with the audience just enough so that they don’t feel ignored. Or you can actively try to make the interaction enjoyable and memorable.
It’s the choice between doing the bare minimum to avoid complaints and going the extra mile to leave a lasting impression.
How do you choose?