Tag Archives: communications

Making Meetings Worthwhile

Do You Hate Meetings?

meetings

In his book Traction, Gino Wickman discussed the development of effective and meaningful meetings. He reports that surveys, where people were asked to rate the effectiveness of meetings on a scale of 1 to 10, the responses were in the 4 to 5 range. Over the last year, I have been involved in a monthly leadership meeting with a client and have observed that attendance had become a struggle. In talking to several of the participants, I discovered that they saw little purpose in the meeting and often found something more important to occupy their time. Let’s share some of the ideas that Mr. Wickman suggests in structuring a Level 10 Meeting (TM).… Read the rest

Listening Better

Being a Good Listener 

storyIt is widely understood that listening is an important skill in a wide range of activities. To be a great leader or manager, you must be a good listener. To be a good salesperson, you must learn to listen to the needs of your customer or client. To be a good teacher, you must listen to the feedback from your class. To be a good parent, you must listen to the questions from your children. Listening is especially important in being a good spouse.… Read the rest

Nonprofit Promotion

The Best Kept Secret in Town

storySo many in the charity and nonprofit world are internally focused on the good work they do. They see, on a daily basis, the positive results generating from their effort. In fact, that is their motivational force, but they may not make a priority of sharing those results with others outside their organization. In many cases, their accomplishments are the best kept secret in town.

It’s not bragging, its sharing

… Read the rest

The Importance of Good Feedback

Enterprise Feedback Managementfeedback

Getting good feedback from customers and employees is vital for any business that expects to grow. Without knowledge, business leaders can not make educated decisions. Uneducated decisions lead to a higher rate of failure, which can have detrimental impacts on a business. Without high quality information, a business owner is flying blind.… Read the rest

Conflict in A Group

Minimizing Group Conflicts

In our discussions with business leaders, they often express frustration with the inability of people in their department or company to work together without distracting conflict. They say:

conflict

  • Why don’t they work well together?
  • Some refuse to even talk to a particular individual.
  • I don’t understand why people act the way they do.
  • Why don’t they see things the way I do?

Overcoming these issues is never simple, but the common approach is referred to as team building. This approach is often accompanied by direct types of game planning, where team members participate in a variety of activities. The games are helpful exercises, after which a facilitator helps the group discuss the lessons learned. We have used this technique on several occasions and we find the results interesting.… Read the rest

A Good Comunicator

Be Curious—And Be a Successful Communicator

There are many ways to improve the way you communicate. For example, you will always start communicationthings off on the right foot by opening the conversation in a way that creates mutual respect. Using phrases such as, “If you have a minute, I’d like to talk with you about something that I think will improve the way we work together,” helps set your conversation partner at ease. It tells him or her that you have positive intentions.

Know Your Purpose

It is also important to know your purpose for the conversation. Some purposes are more useful than others. A useful purpose is one you have power over. For instance, you can control your own reaction; you can share your view; learn about your partner’s view; work toward a sustainable solution.… Read the rest

The Listening Side of Communications

Really Good Listening Habits Are Hard to Find

Listen

When is the last time you had a conversation with someone where you really felt like the person you were talking with was engaged in the conversation and was really interested in what you were communicating?

Their body language, eye contact, and tone of voice were focused and inviting and surrounding distractions seemed irrelevant. Every one of us can remember a meaningful conversation and what it felt like to “be heard.” Being heard is an important component to how we measure our self-worth and self-confidence.… Read the rest