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What makes a great speaker? The qualities that immediately come to mind are things like confidence, expertise, poise, concision and great storytelling. These are all incredibly important pieces of not only engaging an audience but also persuading them. But there’s another aspect to excellent, convincing communication that can be easy to overlook: respecting your audience. Why respect? […]

As a speaker, it’s always important to project authority. Whether through a mastery of detail, a clear understanding of your audience’s needs, a strong speaking voice or a poised stance at the front of the room, showing that you have expertise and confidence can go a long way toward persuading your audience. But there’s another […]

It has become a complete cliché to talk about how fast things move in the world today. But let’s lean into the cliché for a moment, and then talk about how we react to it. How fast is the world moving? Let us count the ways. We can measure it any way you want. There […]

This post was written by Hannah Morris, Facilitator and Coach at The Latimer Group.  It is always disappointing when something looks whole and attractive on the surface, but is revealed to have real foundational flaws. I’ve been going to a physical therapy office for the last couple months and every time I come home, I share […]

I have been teaching and coaching communication skills for a long time… twenty years in fact. Which is a strength, in many ways. I have a large reservoir of experiences and stories, and have seen a lot. But doing anything for a long period of time can also be a weakness. Your experience can become […]

Hello friends! We recently added a new element to our website, where you can submit your communication questions directly to us. We will collect the questions, and either answer directly back to you, or when appropriate, publish a series of questions and our answers on our blog. Our goal here is to give you some […]

Great communication does not just happen. It requires thought, preparation, practice… and it requires a philosophy. There are many philosophies out there in the 21st century business world. But here is what works for us (and our clients tell us it works for them as well): Great communication requires a few key ingredients, which are the basis […]

This post was written by Dan Cooney, Facilitator and Coach at The Latimer Group. We all see things differently. Thanks, Captain Obvious! Yes, it’s a truism, but why is this one so important to you as a communicator? You have to understand the perception gap — the difference between what you said and what was […]

This post was written by Hannah Morris, Director of Facilitation & Evaluation at The Latimer Group.  Author Amy Chua said this, and she is right. Speaking a language that isn’t your native tongue requires taking risks and facing difficulty. It requires embracing the idea that any imperfections are less important than communicating your opinion, feeling, or request. […]

Here is a common scenario that I have watched and experienced many times: the words that were spoken/written by someone were received in way that was different from the intended impact. The message that was received or the feeling that was created was not at all what the speaker/writer was trying to send or create. […]