When in doubt, it out.

If you manage a remote team, you need to use emojis. You probably should use them more than you think.

Why? Because almost everything you write can be taken multiple ways. And when you have a remote team, you’re probably writing more than you’re speaking.

Emoji’s aren’t a substitute for clear writing, and especially not a substitute for an actual conversation.

In addition, when using slack (or any IM) it feels like talking. This means you’re probably using shortcut language, subtle jokes, and expecting all the meaning to flow through. Unfortunately, sometimes it doesn’t work that way.

Error on the side of being clearer, rather than clever.

An experiment

Imagine you’re working along when your boss sends you this message over Slack:

“Joe, could you be more of a perfectionist?”

You think, “Whoa, what does this mean?”Is this praise… or sarcasm?A gentle nudge… or a veiled threat?Is it said with a smile, a frown, or a glare?

Of course, you have no idea. None. All you can do is guess what they mean, and you’ll probably guess wrong. I always seem to.

So, here’s a guide I’d like to propose: Use an emoji with 80% of your written one-on-one communication. I don’t care if it’s over slack, email or text. Drop an emoji in to clarify the tone and mood of the statement.

Here are some examples of how it changes the tone:

• Joe, could you be more of a perfectionist? 👌🏻
• Joe, could you be more of a perfectionist? 🤔
• Joe, could you be more of a perfectionist? 😝
• Joe, could you be more of a perfectionist? 😑

See the difference? It’s not perfect, but its a smell of the tone you want to convey.

Being a manager means communicating clearly. If you have remote workers, it’s MUCH harder for them to know your style and humor. So when in doubt, emoji it out.

When in doubt, 👍 🙌 😂 😊 😳 it out. was originally published in Hacker Noon on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.