Dean Brenner

We spend a ton of time helping our participants make the most persuasive argument possible, and are constantly hearing presentations seeking approvals, alignment, resources or a sale of some kind. All of us need to be good at this, no matter what our role is within our company. And regardless of the kind of persuasive […]

Hello friends, Our blog remains our primary form of regular communication with all of you, and the activity on our site is something we are really proud of. We also enjoy it when a reader reaches out with a comment or a question, which happens all the time. But as we have reviewed our site […]

How good a leader are you? More importantly, how good a follower are you? And most importantly, have you ever thought about the connection between the two? We spend billions of dollars and thousands upon thousands of hours each year teaching and learning how to lead. But we spend comparatively little time teaching and learning […]

A short post today, with some simple, but very powerful lessons to help you become a more effective communicator. These are the concepts we’re thinking about most often in our coaching and client workshops. Click the links throughout to learn more. Think about the outcomes you are trying to achieve. Communicate with purpose.   Avoid the “one size […]

Author’s Note: It is very early here in southwestern Rhode Island, where we will spend the Thanksgiving holiday with extended family and many friends. I am watching the moon set out the kitchen window, and am now seeing the first hint of the sunrise glow to the east. The house is absolutely still, the only […]

[Author’s Context: It is Thanksgiving week here in the United States, which means, hopefully, many of us are taking a moment to pause and be grateful for the things we have. It is also 4:15am here in Connecticut, the feelings are flowing out of me, and I can’t sleep… which means I am writing in […]

The short answer is, “Yes, absolutely.” The slightly longer answer is, “Yes, but you have to work at it.” Some will have to work a lot. Others maybe a bit less. But anyone who wants to be good at this, needs to work at it. A case in point… We recently had an individual at […]

There are some universal communication mistakes that anyone can make in the workplace. That’s a pretty long list. But in addition, there are also some communication mistakes that are not universal, but rather are gender specific. And in an era where there is more scrutiny, and far more risk, coming from the things we say […]

A few weeks ago, I was having a follow-up conversation with a workshop participant. He called me in response to the same, sincere invitation I make at the conclusion of every workshop I teach. Call or email me if you think of something you want to discuss, or just want to run something by me. So, […]

I spend a lot more time thinking about listening now than I used to. Why? I am not really sure. It could be my advancing age. It could be parenthood. It could be experience in my job. It could be the influence of some of the people in my life. Probably, it is a little bit of all those […]