As a Software Engineer, we spend a lot of time discussing things with our teammates – whether it’s about design systems, code reviews, or figuring out the best time to deploy to production.
And since many of us work remotely, most of these discussions happen through messaging apps like Slack, Telegram, or whatever your team prefers. It’s fast, convenient, and part of our daily workflow.
But over time, I realized that some of our communication habits – especially the small ones – can have a surprisingly big impact on team clarity and productivity.
One of those tiny habits?
How we write lists when sharing updates or tasks.
You’ve probably seen something like this before:
- Fix the login button
- Fix the configuration data user
- Fix the caching issue on the Redis setup
Familiar, right?
Some of people I’ve worked with (including myself, at some point) use bullet points to share updates or task lists with the team. It looks neat, it’s simple, and it feels fine.
But here’s the thing – it’s not always clear when you’re trying to discuss something later.
When the Confusion Starts
Imagine your teammate says:
“Hey, that Fix configuration data still has a bug.”
“The second point seems to be missing the acceptance criteria.”
“Hmm… number 3 looks like it’s not actually a Redis issue.”
Wait, which one is the “second point”?
Now you’re counting the bullets one by one just to figure out what they meant.
If there are 10 items on the list, you can easily waste a few minutes just clarifying – and that’s before even fixing anything.
The Simple Fix: Use Numbers
Now let’s change the same list into a numbered list:
- Fix the login button
- Fix the configuration data user
- Fix the caching issue on the Redis setup
Here’s what happens next:
“2. The acceptance criteria seem incomplete.”
“3. I think the issue is on the Redis server, not the setup.”
Boom. Instantly clear.
No one’s guessing, no one’s counting. You can refer to specific points without confusion, even in long discussions.
And if you ever scroll back through old chats or Slack messages months (or years) later, you’ll thank yourself — because numbered discussions are way easier to track.
Small Change, Big Impact
It might sound like a small detail, but this habit actually makes a huge difference in communication – especially in tech teams where context switches happen all the time.
Here’s what I’ve noticed since I started using numbered lists:
- Discussions stay organized
- People reply faster (because they know what you’re referring to)
- Past messages are easier to reference when debugging or reviewing history
Even though I’m sharing this from a Software Engineer’s perspective, this tip isn’t limited to tech teams.
It works for any kind of team communication — whether you’re in design, marketing, product, or operations.
Communication isn’t just about what you say — it’s about how easy it is for others to understand and respond to it. That’s one of those small lessons I’ve learned the hard way as a software engineer. I’ll share more of these little lessons soon.
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