Clear. Concise. Confirmed.

Photo by Mario Verduzco on Unsplash

My partner at Academy Leadership, Jim Nelepa, wrote a chapter for a collaborative book titled ‘Follow Me Leadership.’ The chapter title is “Clear, Concise, Confirmed.” He discusses communication, and his message is wonderfully articulated about the power of communication when it’s executed successfully.

According to Merriam-Webster:

Clear: easily heard, easily visible, free from obscurity or ambiguity, easily understood, unmistakable.

Concise: marked by brevity of expression or statement, free from all elaboration and superfluous detail.

Confirmed: having received the rite of confirmation.

Now, let’s set those words aside for a few minutes.

I recently heard an interview with Jim Harbaugh, the head coach of the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers, and he discussed his return to the NFL. He talked about some challenges he expects to face in the role and highlighted how communication was one of his focus areas moving forward. In the interview, he stressed the importance of communication between coaches and players and how it can impact a game. On coach-to-coach communication, he said, “You have 30–40 seconds to get a play in, a play called; you don’t have time to miss a word or have any doubt. It’s got to be clear, concise, clean communication. Otherwise, you’re getting a delay of game penalty or have to use a time out.”

He’s essentially saying that if communication breaks down, it’s costly. Plain and simple.

From Coach Harbaugh’s perspective, who’s an extraordinarily accomplished football coach, a breakdown somewhere in the line of communication can cost an entire game. His implication is that communication must be “Clear, concise, clean.” Coach Harbaugh’s perspective is straightforward and applicable to a much wider organizational audience; conceptually, the ability to win games through “clear, concise, clean” communication is equivalent to an organization’s ability to drive bottom-line performance. In the NFL, that bottom-line performance is underlined by meticulous attention to detail.

In business, it’s the same.

Back to my partner, Jim. He says, “Clear, concise, confirmed.” Recognize the similarities? A former Army Officer and West Point graduate, he also proficiently relates the message from the perspective of mission accomplishment and the bottom line. The operational impact of a lack of clear, concise, and confirmed communication is significant, and he correctly argues that it must be addressed.

Let’s bring the concept home. Communication matters and breakdowns in the effective communication chain can lead to costly mistakes. Communication is critical regardless of organizational composition or mission, whether on the battlefield, on the playing field, or in the boardroom. Uncertainty and ambiguity will undoubtedly result when communication is unclear, not concise, and not confirmed.

The adage that there’s no stupid question is at play here. How many times can you remember wanting to ask a question but didn’t? I couldn’t begin to count the number of times I was in that predicament and didn’t ask the question for fear of looking ignorant. As I matured, I became more comfortable asking the question because I became more aware of the importance of being 100% sure as the stakes were raised. And as a leader, more aware of the example I could set for my people to do the same.

Great leaders create a safe space to ask questions because they know the pitfalls of uncertainty. They communicate clearly and concisely and make it easy to receive confirmation, not just for themselves but for all team members. Those who fail to do so may still occasionally execute a mission or plan successfully, but if they don’t consistently communicate clearly and concisely and confirm their message, they likely won’t sustain operational success.

It’s no different than calling a play on the field. Without clear, concise, and confirmed information flow, the quarterback may get the call right most of the time, but if they don’t truly understand the call, they’ll eventually execute the wrong play, which can mean the difference between a win and a loss. In business, that can be catastrophic.

Clear, concise, and confirmed.

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