When Morrie was with you, he was really with you. He looked you straight in the eye, and he listened as if you were the only person in the world. How much better would people get along if their first encounter each day were like this – instead of a grumble from a waitress or a bus driver or a …
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Have you ever set a goal, thought long and hard about how you were going to accomplish it, and then pursued this outcome with enthusiasm? But lo and behold, even after what you perceived to be substantial progress on your part, you found that others still viewed you through a dated prism of …
Continue Reading about To Change Performance, Change Perceptions →
One of the better books on building relationships I ever read was called Powerful Conversations. You might be asking "don't you mean a book on communicating?" No, because the only way we really build relationships is with really effective conversations and I am here to tell you that we can all work …
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I recently heard that a couple of clients of mine were challenged because their attempts at using humor in meetings were often not well received. There is little that I admire more than someone that can tell a really good joke. I come by this affinity for a joke or humorous story from a lifetime …
The minister at my church recently referred to a communication concept called triangulation that brings currency and relevance to interpreting biblical verses. The biblical reading was from the book of Matthew, chapter 18, verses 15 – 17: If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, …
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Early in my coaching career, I worked my first two years for another fellow, named Frank, who had established a vibrant coaching practice. He was an excellent salesman and exuded an air of executive gravitas that was fitting with his experience – and his shock of silver hair. He told me a very …
I took some out-of-town guests to see a show at Second City over the holidays. Second City has had a remarkable influence on comedy since it began in the 1950s. The number of Saturday Night Live alumni who hail from Second City is huge. I always enjoy the late show on the weekend because, after the …
Continue Reading about 3 Types Of “Silent Messages” That Speak Very Loudly →
When you ask someone how things are going, how often do you hear "Super" or "Great" or "Really Well"? If your experience is like mine, the answer is "sort of". Because there is usually one word that follows "Super" or "Really" and that is "Busy", as well as "Insanely Busy" or "Ridiculously Busy". …
Continue Reading about Are You Afraid of Talking to Yourself? →
In my last corporate role, we merged our operations with our European partner to create a worldwide organization that was owned by 14 International airlines. Our partner had been headquartered in England, so I really didn’t expect that the language would ever be a barrier to connecting. Boy was I …
Continue Reading about Why It’s Hard to Communicate Clearly (and What to Do About It) →
The legendary rock band Led Zeppelin had a classic hit named "Communication Breakdown", about a fellow's interest in a woman. Here’s the chorus: Communication breakdown, it’s always the same, I’m having a nervous breakdown, drive me insane! When you think about some of the challenges in your …
Everyone stumbles over the truth from time to time, but most people pick themselves up and hurry off as though nothing ever happened. - Winston Churchill There are times when we leave a meeting or listen to a presentation and you say to yourself, "Why didn’t they talk about 'Subject X' because …
Continue Reading about Dealing With the Elephants: Why We Fail to Confront the Obvious →
