The 24 Hour Rule

Guy Kawasaki has a great blog today - a New Media Workshop: What to Do When the Conversation Turns Ugly.

I won't repeat the key points here. Guy is eloquent - read his original blog.

But I did notice that his advice rings true for any ugly conversation - not just social media ones. Everyone receives flaming emails from time to time. The same tactics and advice apply.

My version of how to handle "ugly conversations" is to instantly write a snarky reply and then NOT SEND IT. I allow myself 24 hours to calm down, regain my composure, then go back and edit out all the four letter words and emotional language.

I think that the 24 hour delay response also subliminally says "I've given consideration to what you had to say and here's why you're wrong."

If the goal is to communicate with your adversary it must be done calmly.

If you take the bait and ratchet up the rhetoric and emotion, you both lose (unless it was the email flamer's intent in the first place, in which case only YOU lose.)

Political season provides real life examples of how to handle personal attacks. Watch Mike Huckabee the next time one of his Republican colleagues takes a personal shot. He never gets angry. In fact, he puts on a big smile and plays "the bigger man".

It works.