The first day I joined my actual company one of the first thing my colleagues told me was: “…and we have our internal chat tool”. — I was surprised.

For the first time in my (yet short) career, a tool I always used in an informal way became an official tool.

They explained me it would be very useful because we have a frequent collaboration with an office located in another city. I was excited. There was no more need to ask for a private contact.

The first time I had to speak with someone in the other office I added him into my contact list; some minutes of wait; he accepted me. We began chatting. Some introducing sentences and I went straight to the point. In a couple of minutes everything was clear. — “Ok, thank you. Bye bye”.

From my point of view this is the right way to use a chat at work.
Fast, concise, direct.

Problems start when you use IM to clarify or even solve some intricate problem. The conversation become too long and difficult: the more you try to explain yourself the more it becomes longer, and longer, and harder…

Have you ever seen how this kind of chat takes place? The brain works so hard in order to explain in few words the matter that it will ignore everything is happening in the background. You may see people calling their workmate for a dozen times before getting an answer like “hey, yes…!? what’s up?”. Or even worse “…hey, yes… wait a second please”.

You can call it “concentration” , I call it “rudeness”. We should always keep in mind that our physical presence is more important than the virtual one. The man on the other side of the chat will not feel offended if you don’t answer in 2 seconds. Because it is a chat.

Most likely the one who’s looking in your eyes will find you annoying and impolite.

Please, keep your professional chats quick.

“But it was urgent.” — So why don’t you pick up the phone and make a call?