Navigating Communication Landmines in an Open Source Project

Ryan Sullivan - @ryandonsullivan

Navigating Communication Landminesin an Open Source ProjectHow to not to be a jerk on the internetRyan Sullivan | @ryandonsullivan

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Hi, Im Ryan!@ryandonsullivan


Im Ryan Sullivan. You can find me online anywhere at @ryandonsullivan

I run a support company


I run WP Site Care and get to talk to all sorts of customers day in and day outI talk with people via email, chat, social media, and any other written medium you can imagine

Why are you giving this talk? Im giving this talk for me more than anyone else. When I first got involved in the Online community I came from Tech Forums and Reddit. Communication in Open Source is not that.

Have you ever said something you wish you hadnt?


And then you immediately wanted to take it back and had a moment like this before?

Now envision a scenario where you make the same mistake, and its written in public, and not only is there very little context surrounding it, theres also no tone, no body language, and no emotion.

Now imagine that youre saying it to a complete stranger.

Ive said tons of stuff I wish I hadnt. I have moments like these all the time with my wife, Jackie, but shes an incredibly forgiving person and knows for the most part that I mean well.


I spend a lot of the time in my marriage doing this, but the internet doesnt let us backpedal like this a lot of the time

Wheatons Law

Dont Be a Jerk



Almost none of us would say what we do if we were talking to people face to face

http://loopconf.io/talks/


Steven Word Gave an awesome talk at LoopConf on being empathetic. How many of us take the time to consider where people that were conversing with online are coming from? Or do we just react and ask questions later. Well circle back to this, but definitely watch his talk when you get a chance.

Were Emotionally Tied To Our Work


How many of us have built something, only to have the concept, our code, our design, or anything else about the work criticized? Is it fun? Of course not.

Written languagecan be almost impossible to decipher


Communication Platforms in Order of Horror


All of these platforms have things to offer. But have conversations on the platform thats appropriate for your topic.

Talk about code on Github. Talk about your cat on Facebook

Take every opportunity to teach


How many people have committed code, or written software, and had a senior developer give you the Nick Burns treatment?

People who are more skilled or have more experience have a responsibility to teach those who are coming up.

The public callout rarely, if ever, makes things better


We screwed up by building diviexposed. Even though we werent wrong about the dangers and issues with the product, publicly targeting the company immediately put them on the defensive, and also made us look like bullies. The website was up for less than an hour after the backlash.

The one exception is Comcast. Theyre legitimately evil.

How Do We Fix It?

Always assume miscommunication over maliceGregory Ciotti | Source: http://www.helpscout.net/blog/remote-work-experience/

Ryan Sullivan | @ryandonsullivan

The remote workers version of Hanlons razor. Some interactions will feel cold due to the human tendency to misinterpret emotionless text. Jokes and sarcasm dont translate perfectly, theres no body language to interpret, and conversations via chat can be interrupted at any time, making it laughably easy to assume a severe tone where one wasnt intended. Stick to assuming positive intent; when working with great people, youll rarely be wrong.

Use emoji


Amazing tool.

Express your love for Emoji

Be careful about how you use it though. You cant say horrible things and add a ;) at the end to make it all better.

Video is amazing!


We screwed up by building diviexposed. Even though we werent wrong about the dangers and issues with the product, publicly targeting the company immediately put them on the defensive, and also made us look like bullies. The website was up for less than an hour after the backlash.

The one exception is Comcast. Theyre legitimately evil.

Context matters


Talk in the place thats most appropriate

Twitter for quick connectionGithub for anything code relatedFacebook for politics

Set clear guidelines


Weve released software before that didnt clearly explain how it worked, or how to extend it, and it blew up in our face. People were responding and telling us it was broken and sucked and everything else. It worked great for its intended purpose, but we werent clear enough about what that purpose was

Go To WordCamp


Spend time with people. Go to conferences, meetups, chamber of commerce. Anything to attach a real living person to their online presence

Things Can StillGo Wrong


How do we respond when this happens?

Take a break


iOS app or website. Great opportunity to just unwind

Take a hot shower

Go for a walk

Relax


You are not part of a special correctness task force

Write a draft


Write a draft response. Are you still upset? Does your argument still make sense? Sometimes just writing the draft is great therapy, gives you time to gain empathy, and helps you clarify both sides of the argument

Stop. Collaborateand Listen


Have an attitude of collaboration. The reality is we all have the same end goal, and finding a common path to building software for 25% of the internet can be really challenging, but its also extremely rewarding. It feels good to work as a team.

Thank You!

Ryan Sullivanwww.wpsitecare.com@ryandonsullivan

Navigating Communication Landmines in an Open Source Project

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