context

The recent controversy over Bill Maher’s use of a racial epithet was yet another example of the power of language. Words have meaning, both good and bad. Words have power, both good and bad. Words make us feel things, both good and bad. This post is not about Bill Maher, the politics of language or […]

The Recipe for Great Communication contains 5 ingredients: Clarity, Brevity, Context, Impact, and Value. But depending on your audience’s “taste” — that is, depending on what kind of information your audience needs — those ingredients may vary in proportion. So, how do we know how much of each ingredient to use when we prepare for meetings […]

The world I grew up in and the world my young son is growing up in are vastly different. And I’m not even that old! But when I was a kid, there was no cable TV, no internet, no streaming content… We had five channels, and you watched what was on, commercials and all, and […]

We’ve all been to THIS conference call… too many times in fact. While Tripp and Tyler absolutely nail the inherent comedy in the ways we conduct conference calls, let’s take the conversation to the next level. How do we run better conference calls? Here are a few simple ideas: 1. Set context and get the […]

My colleagues and I always talk about the five ingredients for great communication. And those five things are as follows: Clarity, brevity, context, impact and value. Now, as you think about the last line I just wrote above, which word do you think is most important? Clarity, brevity, context, impact and value. Which of those […]

A 2004 survey from Raindance Communications looked at the issue of multitasking. And for those of you who regularly lead conference calls (like me), brace yourselves… the numbers ain’t pretty. These stats are a little dated but still eye-opening. According to this survey: 90% of people surveyed said they multitask while on conference calls; 70% reported doing other, […]

We have shared many past posts here on the need and importance of clarity and brevity in your communications. Clarity and brevity are often the price of admission to be heard in the 21st century — table stakes — the cost to simply be able to play in the big leagues and have people listen […]

During a client workshop recently, the participants and I were talking about how different the world is now, compared to even twenty or thirty years ago. We were telling stories about life prior to email or the internet or 1000-channel-cable menus. I shared the fact that my kids have hardly ever seen a commercial because the television […]

We talk and write often about our 5 “ingredients” in the recipe for great communication: Clarity, Brevity, Context, Impact, and Value. We also have written a few articles and blog posts about the War on Detail — the notion that details in business and communication DO matter greatly, but we should choose carefully which details we […]

We spend an incredible amount of time speaking with our clients about capturing attention right up front when we speak. In a hyper-speed, over-scheduled, attention-starved world, it is critical that we have the skills to capture our audience’s attention right away. Otherwise, they will never engage, they won’t be listening, and they won’t absorb anything […]