too many cooks: preventing content interference so you can do your job
TRANSCRIPT
Too Many Cooks! How to prevent content interference so you can
do your job.
Jared Thomas MeyerConfab Higher Ed 2016
11/16/2016@jaredt
m
Here’s what we’re gonna do
Talk about what content
interference is.
Figure out why content
interference happens.
Talk about ways to stop it from
happening.
1 2 3
XKCD.com
What is content interference?The unsolicited, unwanted, and often uninformed opinion of an interloper that delays or alters carefully crafted content.
“I looked at the website. Here are
my edits.”
“The letter from the director
needs to be on the home page.”
“Carousels! FAQs! PDFs!”
Design
“Feedback”
Final Product
Content production process...
How do you want to spend your day?
PeopleProblems
Good ideas
Bad ideas
LeadershipInspiration
InnovationCreativity
Petty TyrantsDisengagemen
t
Embarrassment
Failure
Causes of content interference
We fight over content because…
1.It’s highly visible and poorly understood
2.It’s easy to fake expertise
3.Jacked up service-model power dynamics
Visibilityis power.
(That’s why it’s so political)
Competing interests......and limited resources.
Content strategy is a mysteryYou’re magic.
Expertiseis easy to fake.
(At least, in the content world.)
Fachidiot
“A person who is an expert in their field, but a complete fool in every other topic.”
Service-modelpower dynamics.
(Who do you work for, exactly?)
About your job...
You think:
“My job is to find ways to efficiently produce effective content!”
Your boss thinks:
“Their job is to do what I tell them!”
You think: Your boss thinks:
Recap! - Why we fight over content
We fight over content because…
1.It’s highly visible and poorly understood
2.It’s easy to fake expertise
3.Jacked up service-model power dynamics
Content interference is high risk stuff
People want to make meaningful contributions
Input feels personal
Content feels very important
Take a strategic approach
Change your culture
Change the way you work
Try these tactics
Listen
Include
Evangelize
Depersonalize
Be specific
“One of the best ways to persuade others is with your ears―by listening to them.”
― Kerry Patterson, Crucial Conversations
Listento more than just words.
Start with their problemsDo the safety danceStart every project with interviews
“Remember teamwork begins by building trust. And the only way
to do that is to overcome our need for invulnerability.”
― Patrick Lencioni, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team
Includeevery stakeholder.
Make it a safespaceCreate mutual meaningInvent mutual meaning
“The key to real change lies not in implementing a new process, but in getting people to hold one
another accountable to the process.”
― Kerry Patterson, Crucial Conversations
Depersonalizeand align on mutual
purpose.
Point to governance documentsLean on data & best practicesDon’t be a sociopath
“Courage starts with showing up and letting ourselves be seen.”
― Brené Brown, Daring Greatly
Evangelizeto make content converts.
Present THIS conference!Create (or join) a committee
“Start with Heart. The first question is: ‘What do I really
want?’…How would I behave if I really wanted these results?”
― Kerry Patterson, Crucial Conversations
Be specificabout what you want.
Use contrastingAsk for what you wantOffer what was asked
Take a strategic approach
Change your culture
Change the way you work
Try these tactics
Listen
Include
Evangelize
Depersonalize
Be specific
Essential elements for success1) A culture of empowerment and integrity
2) A boss that supports you
Crappy culture?No support?
Quit your job.
No really.
Quitting your job is an act of optimism.
Thanks!
Jared Thomas Meyer
Content Strategist (by way of copywriting)
George Washington University to Quad Learning, LLC to Bixal
Jaredthomasmeyer.com
twitter.com/jaredtm