Revisiting Working Out Loud
Now that online collaboration tools have stopped being a novelty and many mainstream organisations have adopted them into their knowledge work (whether in “remote”, “hybrid” or “office-based” settings), there is one concept that’s ready to make a comeback: “working out loud”.
I left this term to one side back in 2019 in favour of Visible Teamwork (you can read more about it here), but recently it resurfaced in a conversation, in the context of how to make online collaboration stronger, more sustainable and more rewarding, I’m ready to bring it back.
The phrase “working out loud” resurfaced during my recording for episode 357 of the 21st Century Work Life podcast with Jaap Linssen. Jaap has worked for over a decade as a consultant and trainer helping organisations communicate better, and one of the principles he keeps turning to is that of working out loud.
Working out loud, a term coined by Bryce Williams in 2010, is a principle that encourages employees (or other kinds of collaborators, or those belonging to an official or unofficial professional community) to share their work in progress, making it visible to their colleagues. By doing so, team members can seek help, ask questions, and receive valuable input from others.
Working out loud as part of your regular workflow
In my conversation with Jaap he suggested one way of doing working out loud is through the use of threaded conversations or "narratives" in collaboration platforms like Microsoft Teams, making it part of ongoing communication.
For example, instead of sending individual emails or messages, employees create a post within a relevant channel, outlining the project they are working on and sharing the associated documents. As decisions are made, revisions occur, or comments arise, they are captured within the thread, creating a comprehensive narrative of the project's progress. This allows team members, even those who have been away for an extended period, to quickly catch up and understand the project's history and current status.
In this way, the practice of working out loud can be integrated into the flow of work. Rather than treating “documentation” as an additional task, team members simply conduct their work within the narrative, eliminating the need for separate emails or journaling. This approach not only reduces the number of meetings and emails but also fosters a strong sense of collective awareness within the team.
Working against Your instinct
Adopting this new way of working requires a shift in mindset, which can be challenging for those used to traditional communication methods. Employees often struggle to break free from the habit of sending individual messages and are not used to viewing their work as a collected story. That’s where it’s useful to plant the seed of thinking about work as narratives – stories that progress over time and capture rich contextual information alongside documents. This is not just about version control; it's about preserving the invaluable context that surrounds the work itself.
For those of you looking for practical advice, here are some ways to help you start “narrating your work”:
Think of work as narratives or stories that progress over time, rather than individual messages sent to colleagues.
When working on a project or document, create a threaded conversation or post in a relevant channel (e.g. Slack or Microsoft Teams) and share the document there, instead of sending an attachment via email.
As decisions are made, revisions occur, or comments arise, capture them within the thread, creating a comprehensive narrative of the project's progress.
Conduct work within the narrative instead of sending separate emails or journaling afterward, keeping the process in the flow of work.
Focus on capturing contextual information (e.g. why a document has changed, what decisions were made, what comments were provided) alongside the document in one place.
Encourage teams to view this practice as creating a narrative together, fostering team cohesion and collective awareness of what others are working on. (It can even provide a point of connection!)
Help people understand that this approach is not about sharing every single thought or constant messaging, but rather being deliberate and mindful in sharing work in a way that is useful to oneself and others.
Beyond YOUR team
John Stepper, the author who made the term popular through his book "Working Out Loud: For a Better Career and Life," expands on the concept by highlighting the benefits of building relationships and creating a more connected workforce. By openly sharing their work and experiences, employees can develop a stronger sense of purpose, increase their visibility within the organisation, and foster a culture of trust and collaboration.
Not everyone will embrace the concept of working out loud. But for those employees who seek connection with others at their own pace, who look for ways of engaging with the work of others and who don’t always look forward to the next office social, working out loud can just be the practice that will help them engage.
CODA
In the spirit of working out loud, I’d like to share the collaborative process I went through to write this post. I generated a transcript of the relevant conversation with Jaap and asked it to create a blog post. I then instructed it to add some historic context, and extract the key learnings from conversation. Finally, I added my own take on the subject and edited Claude’s words. Then I ran it by Japp, and here we are!
If you’d like to know more about working out loud and visible teamwork, check out these past articles::
DIRECTT: A Simple Framework for Learning and Connection in Remote and Hybrid Teams
Feeling Connected through Visible Workflow in your Remote Team
Work Visibility: Open Conversations in Remote Teams