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Three Leadership Fundamentals
Today is day two of the Global Leadership Summit. I am attending at a site near my home, along with thousands of people across this country and around the world. By the end of the year, people in 76 countries (400 cities) will experience this leadership training...
Two Key Messages
Every organization has a communication culture, one that is shaped and reinforced by the people within the organization, especially the leaders. In his seminal work On Leadership, John Gardner identifies two key messages critical for healthy communication in...
Tell Me A Story
In my last post, I shared a story about my grandfather and the song he sang to me when I was a little girl to help me remember to speak clearly. Don't you love stories? Stories are the most powerful tool we have in communicating with others. The reason? Stories anchor...
Speak Distinctly
Pig-tailed and freckle-faced, I stood next to my grandpa's chair. "Speak distinctly, or do-not-speak or do-not-speak at all," he said. It was kind of a song. As a young girl, I often talked so quickly – and with such a high-pitched squeak – that he couldn't understand...
The Other 93%
I find it hard to conceal my emotions from others. if I'm excited about something, you'll know it. If I'm disappointed about something, I won't be able to hide that from you either. If I'm particularly upset about something, I struggle to maintain eye contact. If I'm...
Find a Common Language
In the summer of 1992, I stood on a ferryboat with a few friends in the middle of the Bosphorus Strait, the body of water that separates the city of Istanbul, Turkey, into two continents. We had spent the day in Asia but were headed back to the European side, where we...
Social Media Communication
Picture yourself in the center of a large auditorium, wearing a blindfold. The blindfold is a wispy, translucent fabric... so you can see the people around you: their form, their coming and going; you can identify a few familiar faces. What you can't see is their...
Reflective Listening
Whenever I hang up the phone after talking to my friend Lisa, I always feel better than I did before the call. It's not because she makes me laugh, although she often does; it's not because she asks good questions or because she affirms and encourages me, although she...
Three Stories of Communication and Trust
We had lived in our new neighborhood for about four months when our neighbors from across the cul-de-sac stop by to let us know that their pool was open and ready for swimming. Stop by anytime, they told us. A week or so later, they followed-up with a dinner...
A Medium to Match Your Message
In any given day, I communicate by sharing information in many different ways. I talk to my daughters, my husband, my friends and neighbors, and anyone else I happen to see, face to face. I send emails — lots of them. I make phone calls; I text; I send Facebook...
Plan to Lead
So I sat on the curb in the middle of the night with my three girls. And no one came to tell us what was going on or when we could expect to get back to bed. Frankly, I wasn't surprised. Oftentimes, we miss opportunities to lead that seem obvious later. Of course, it...
A Glimpse of Greatness
The alarm sounded, shrill and loud. Bleary-eyed, I pulled on my cut-off shorts, grabbed my car keys and my phone, and woke up my three little girls. "Girls, come on. We have to get up." Carrying the smallest, I led the others into the hallway and out of the hotel room...