The Mic is Always On

I am reading an article on the book "Speaking as a Leader" by Judith Humphrey and it makes a good point. One we often forget.

The Mic is Always On.

This is a good lesson for anyone in business, but an even better one for managers. Once you start leading other people, your responsibilities change. You are no longer a party of one. You are holding the careers, aspirations and livelihoods of a greater group of people in your hands. And a key responsibility of any manager is to lead (and speak) by example.

So remember, that mic is always on. Capturing your words and blaring them out for all the world to hear.

That means when you think you are off the "manager" stage: at lunch, out with friends, on Facebook; you in fact, aren't.  

The words you say (and write) will always be heard. They create people's impression of you, of your company, of how they think you are as a person and a manager.

I know I have caught myself on occasion saying things that later I wished I hadn't. Either I spoke less-than-kindly about someone at work, or complained unnecessarily, dropped an f-bomb, whatever. The mic is on and people are hearing what I say. I may think the audience may not matter at the time, but who knows how what I say will get shared around.

This is especially true in the crazy social world we now live in. Your words can get repeated, misinterpreted and broadcast out to very large audiences in a millisecond.  So be careful around that microphone, for a manager, it is always on.