Maxim #22
Don’t filter information
This maxim refers to the natural tendency of people to try to decide whether something is important enough to let their manager know about it. People “filter” information based on their best judgment, and based on the faulty assumption that it is their job to take care of such matters and not to bother their manager.
This is particularly true when people are new to a company and are trying to establish themselves. The problem is that at this early stage most people lack the experience to make good judgment calls about what is serious or not. Sometimes seemingly insignificant comments or actions can be very damaging.
That is why you should never filter information. Let your manager decide if an unusual situation is serious or not. This does not mean that people should not think through the issues and develop a potential response or solution to discuss with their manager, but any unusual situation should always be brought to your manager’s attention swiftly.
