powerful counsel | powerful messages | powerful conversations
Remember when the New Year was a time of delightful anticipation? We’d make plans to conquer the world? In March 2020 I looked back with a sinister laugh at my January and February 2020 self and said, I’m never doing THAT again. But even though … [Read more...] about What’s next?
Let’s talk about words. If I say “ruby” to someone at a jewelry store, I’m going to get something very different than if I say “Ruby” on GitHub. Shared vocabulary is a prerequisite for any successful conversation. It’s your responsibility both as … [Read more...] about Words. They matter.
‘’Perception is reality.” Lee Atwater coined this phrase in political campaigning because he saw that what people think is more powerful than what’s true. Objectivity does not exist. This can be super frustrating, but it’s TRUE. People do not … [Read more...] about Reality?
Let me state the obvious: The three minute presentation you give at a university recruiting day should be radically different from your board meeting. The language you use at a biotech conference to a bunch of doctors is different from the language … [Read more...] about Context matters!
I said this last year, but it bears repeating. It’s OK to say “I don’t know.” In our world right now there are so many questions and so few answers. Not knowing is really frustrating. Especially when you’re a leader who is supposed to know. But … [Read more...] about “I don’t know” is OK. Really.
Your first user conference in two years is next week! It’s oversubscribed! Everyone is so excited to get together!! Yay! But your famous keynote speaker got COVID. Oh no! You’re finally opening the gorgeous office you leased two years ago! Yay! … [Read more...] about Start. Stop. Start Again.
Your company is having a WFIO moment and you’re the spokesperson. Oh s***. If you are the person on point to communicate in a crisis, you absolutely MUST practice. Yes, finding out what went wrong is a ton of work. Deciding what to say about it is a … [Read more...] about Don’t wing it!
"Knowledge is the new money," said Michael Simmons in Quartz. Lots of researchers will tell you that the half-life of a job skill is about five years. Gulp. If we’re going to thrive as the world continues its rapid paroxysms of change, we have to … [Read more...] about Learning, learning, learning
Everyone’s quitting - to go back to school, to go run an alpaca farm, to travel. You’re left with a ton of work to do and a team that looks like swiss cheese. Receiving resignations from your talented people is one of the great miseries of corporate … [Read more...] about Graceful goodbyes
What’s a crescendo? In a symphony or an aria, it’s a swelling of music that tells listeners that THIS is the most important, the most lush, the most beautiful part of the piece. Composers do so many intricate and wonderful things to build to … [Read more...] about Your talk can be a symphony
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