"Focus on quality interactions rather than volume"

"What's your preferred way of communicating? Is it written channels where you feel more confident because you have more time to formulate ideas or thoughtful responses privately? What's your preferred way of processing information? Do you need more time and space to percolate, or do you enjoy thinking (and responding) on your feet? What's your comfort level if you compare one-to-one chats versus how you feel in team meetings?"

"Once you have a fair idea of your preferences, and assuming you feel more confident in writing, email your manager with an agenda for your next 1:1, a general 'work health check' five months into your new role. In this health check, you can cover 'work communication' and outline your preferred style. Outline yours ahead of the meeting via email, and suggest that it would be great to learn the preferences from other team members, too."

"This should cue your manager to 're-boot' team communication, especially in meetings, which should always be inclusive and chaired fairly by balancing out voices and opinions. This includes having an agreed timeline of when feedback needs to be in by, with a reminder that this can be communicated in different ways over a certain duration, e.g. email or verbally in 1:1s. That way, all answers can be collated and discussed as a team together at an agreed time."

Identify personal communication preferences, including written channels for thoughtful responses and whether one needs time to percolate or prefers responding on the spot. Compare comfort levels between one-to-one chats and team meetings and assess whether meetings are inclusive or dominated by a few voices. Email the manager ahead of the five-month 1:1 with an agenda framed as a work health check, outlining individual communication style and proposing to gather teammates' preferences. Request a manager-led reboot of team communication to ensure inclusive, fairly chaired meetings, agreed feedback timelines, multiple communication channels, and time to prepare.

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