communications Being suddenly ignored isn’t only confined to dating, reports Gina Clarke She explains: “With remote working


and internal pods becoming integrated into normal ways of working, there is less face-to-face team connection and that can lead to people feeling sidelined if they are left out of the conversation.” McCann believes people ghost when


they have something negative to say but don’t want to ruin the previous rapport. She says: “Avoidance is natural for humans, but it’s not always beneficial. The person doing the ghosting can be left feeling guilty and confused as they have not effectively confronted the issue.”


Of course, there are issues on the


A ghost in the machine


G


hosting is a term synonymous with the failure of a lover or date to respond, despite previous


promising communication. That once special person simply slips out of your life, like a ghost. In the workplace, there are more of


us – myself included – who feel modern technology can make it far easier for an editor or case study interviewee to ignore us. This isn’t a case of having made a bad pitch or expecting a response to a cold email. Ghosting is to drop mid-conversation from what has sometimes been a cultivated relationship into nothing. In part, the explosion of


communication platforms is at fault. Large teams tend to rely on Slack, WhatsApp, Trello or others, meaning a good idea can often get lost among the white noise.


Freelance journalist Gillian Harvey


believes ghosting is becoming par for the course.


She says: “One particular editor


snaps up several ideas in a row, then suddenly goes quiet for months at a time. Once I pitched two ideas in June, and she responded in the December with two commissions. It does make it very hard to know where you are with work.” Still, there are ways around it, such as using social media. Freelance Kate Chapman uses Twitter to chase up her pitches. She says: “It’s often because editor’s


inboxes were full and they bounced my messages back. I think they’re just so overwhelmed with emails, junk and pitches that they very often don’t see communications as well. Worrying times.” Additional stress arises from


wondering if someone never comes back to you, whether it is polite to move on without ending the conversation. Psychologist Rebecca McCann from


clickfortherapy.com believes that this way of working can generate more pressure than an office environment.


“ ”


One editor snaps up several ideas in a row, then suddenly goes quiet for months at a time. It makes it very hard to know where you are with work


receiving end too. Therapist Sally Baker recognises workplace ghosting can cause an unsettling train of reactions. The emotions can follow an arc similar to that of grief, beginning with feelings of shock and denial through to overwhelming sadness. She says: “Initially, a person can feel confused and even doubt that they are being ghosted so keep making repeated and sometimes more intense efforts to contact the person. “It’s not unusual for the ghosted person to feel excessive and increasing levels of anguish as the whole scenario of being sidelined keeps being played over and over in their mind. “The idea that multiple


communication platforms are an aid has become the accepted wisdom of the day, but the reality is very different.” Of course, simpler reasons could be


at play too – such as the news agenda. Angharad Salazar Llewellyn is a senior freelance editor and believes a fast-paced environment could be a cause for concern. She says: “One old editor used to love an idea one day, save it for the next and then be completely bored by it as it wasn’t new any more.” Whether ghosting is down to technology, a need to remain ‘nice’ or even the news agenda, it is having a worrying psychological impact on freelance and remote workers, who often work without the presence of another human for several days a week.


As freelances continue to juggle


everything from loneliness to financial worries, it means dealing with our ghosts is often far more unsettling than it needs to be.


theJournalist | 13


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