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Miscommunication happens when we assume others can “read between the lines” or make connections just because we can.

(We recently had a conversation with a good friend of The Latimer Group, who said something really powerful to us. Our friend shared that her firm no longer calls communication a “soft skill.” Instead, they refer to communication as a “power skill.” We LOVE that, and it caused me to write this post, which has […]

This post was written by Lauren St. Germain, Facilitator and Coach for The Latimer Group. I’m nearly two years into parenthood and often say that raising a little human is the fastest way to develop leadership skills. It’s forced me to become more self-aware, consider a perspective outside of my own, and has made me more mindful […]

Here is a story I have witnessed countless times in my career… Think about a young, aspiring leader, with great ideas, all the best intentions, and enough energy to power up a city block. This young leader wants to do well, wants to help the company, and brings great ideas to the table. But that […]

My colleagues and I always talk about the importance of getting to the point quickly. So don’t worry… I am not about to contradict twenty years of Latimer teaching. But my colleagues and I also believe in the importance of audience and situational awareness, and that we should always try to avoid a one-size-fits-all approach. […]

Do you find persuasion easy? For most of us, the answer probably is some version of “sometimes.” It’s a broad question, with lots of variables: what you are “asking” for, the environment and situation, the person being asked, and several other variables can all play a part in how easily the persuasion happens… or if it […]

This post was written by Jay Prewitt, Director of Coaching and Facilitation at The Latimer Group. I was at a post-rehearsal sushi dinner with my friend Ayur, who sings bass with me in a choral ensemble. Ayur is ethnically Mongolian, speaks Russian, Buryat, and Korean, and has been living in the United States for a year and […]

I was speaking with a good friend recently. He’s a business owner, and the definition of a straight shooter. He doesn’t tolerate people who waste his time or who don’t deliver as promised. He shared a story of a contractor he was working with who never, ever seemed to be able to meet a deadline. And his […]

Making the determination about what is and what is not appropriate is a judgment call that we can only make when we are honest with ourselves about who our audience is and what the context is for our meeting.

Great and powerful communication is not a single skill set. No, in fact great and powerful communication is actually four skills. And like any other elite artist or athlete, great performances are built first by breaking the overall skill into subskills. When we break things down into smaller parts, it is easier to build a […]