Censorship is often seen as a bad thing, but there are times when it not only isn’t bad, but necessary. I recently sent a text to our reconstruction contractor and uncharacteristically stated in writing that something in our house looked “amateurish”. Not to excuse my choice of wording, but that was at the end of a string of detail quality points I was making and I was frustrated. The contractor forwarded that text and picture to his subcontractor, prefacing with a caveat, “Don’t take this personally. Jim can be blunt, but he doesn’t really mean amateurish.”
Yes, I used that term. As it turned out, there was a valid reason for what was done and my concern, while equally valid, was placated. Still, the subcontractor did take it personally, and that affected a separate, larger issue. Continue reading
