One of worst techniques you’ll pick up in business is “let’s do lunch.” It sounds like a great device for conducting business, be it a pitch or project work. Often, your offer is accepted, after all, we have to eat! It sounds less ominous than, “I’d like to setup a meeting to come talk to…
DetailsWhen you hurt someone’s feelings at work, it’s too easy to try and smooth it over with an attoboy or platitude. But is that really a relationship booster or just a band aid? Most of my keynote talks are about how to create and maintain strong business relationships. Most discussions focus on customer or teammate…
DetailsAt one time, Achilles was considered the strongest of all Greek warriors, except for his pesky heel problem. To give you a Greek mythology refresher, Achilles was the hero of various battles during the Trojan War. He was invulnerable, except for one spot untouched on his heel. And in true mythology misfortune, Achilles met his…
DetailsEstablishing a sense of congruence or similarity with other people is an important element of building rapport. When you understand other people, and are attuned to their needs and desires, they are more likely to feel as though you’re on the same wavelength.
I’ve been approached by a prospective client who wants a workshop as part of an internal strategic initiative around communications between the levels. They want to focus on: 2-way communication, down to the employee and upward to the manager what should be communicated and when obstacles to communicating more openly how to solicit communication from…
DetailsHow much information should a leader really share with employees? Some bosses are like Col. Jessup played by Jack Nicholson in A Few Good Men in thinking their employees “can’t handle the truth.” Communication continues to be cited as a problem in nearly all organizations. Solving communication problems is kind of like finding a cure…
DetailsWhere are Your Manners!!? “The way you see people is the way you treat them and the way you treat them is what they become” Goethe Research from a number of sources has revealed that manners are increasingly missing in action, with uncivil behavior on the rise. This is leaving people feeling angry, irritated, and…
DetailsI recently read an article by Ezra Klein that made a strong case for not raising the age of eligibility for social security. In the U.S. it is going from 65 to 67. I have always assumed–without a lot of thought, I might add–that raising the retirement age was a no brainer way to reduce…
DetailsDeadlines, conference calls, last minute items that pop up, personal commitments—there is a multitude of things that we have to accomplish each day. It is easy to fall into the habit of just crossing things off of our to do list, without being fully present as we get them done. Of course we are physically…
DetailsLet me start by saying that I am not an extrovert, and yet I’ve built my career on networking. It’s opened doors for me, given me critical advice, and when I became an entrepreneur, developed millions of dollars in business for my company. There’s a common assumption that to be a good networker you need…
DetailsResearch reported by Alex Pentland in the April issue of Harvard Business Review has revealed some interesting new information on effective teams. He and his group deployed “sociometric badges” in teams in 21 organizations. These devices are able to monitor on individual team members’ tone of voice, body language, frequency of initiating and responding, plus…
DetailsHave you ever had confidential information leak that reflected on you or your department? One of the worst surprises for a supervisor is having confidential information repeated back from an inappropriate source. How could this have leaked? Who leaked it?
DetailsAs you might imagine, as a paid expert on communication and leadership, I get some well earned ribbing at home from my wife Robin because of my poor listening skills as a husband and father. Once I made the comment that she just didn’t pay me as well as my client’s did for me to…
DetailsI came across a quote from Oprah Winfrey, interviewed in the Dec. 26/10 issue of Parade : Everybody just wants to be heard…Do your eyes light up when I enter the room? Did you hear me and did what I say mean anything to you? That’s all they’re looking for. That’s what everybody is looking…
DetailsThe endless assortment of messages, feelings, and attitudes we bring from our past into our present influences how we see ourselves. It also directly impacts our ability to relate to others. While growing up, we learned to judge ourselves and our capabilities based on how others saw us. Whether their judgments were complimentary or condemning…
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