Communication

Have you ever run a virtual meeting — over the phone or by video — and felt like no one was on the other end of the line? Have you ever asked a question and been met with what feels like an ocean of silence? Have you ever wondered how to create more engagement? Sure, […]

My colleagues and I write and talk all the time about having a message plan. And furthermore, we write and talk all the time about how strong listening skills can make your message planning stronger and easier. But what do we listen for? Listening is great and important, and most people don’t do it very well. But is it enough […]

Simple idea today, that comes up in our coaching sessions all the time. My colleagues and I talk constantly about great communication skills, and all the things that help create those skills. We believe that when we take the time to prepare for our meetings, presentations and calls, we will do a much better job creating success, and […]

This post was written by Hannah Morris, Facilitator and Coach at The Latimer Group.   Situational awareness – being aware of what is going on around us – is a crucial element of successful communication and connection. It starts with paying attention to and getting familiar with a baseline of what is normal, what can be expected. Once […]

You can tell a lot about an organization by the way it behaves. The things that an organization says it cares about matter, of course. But what matters more is whether the organization’s actual behaviors match up with its communication. It is one thing to say “our customers come first.” But what matters more is whether, […]

Memory is a curious thing, serving different people in different ways. Some people have a great memory for numbers, others dates, and still others names. My memory is pretty esoteric. I can tell you the name of every episode of the television show The West Wing, the opening day starting lineup for nearly every Yankee […]

This post was written by Hannah Morris, Director of Assessment & Advancement at The Latimer Group.   At some point or another, we’ve all probably shared an exhausted statement of how busy we are. The reality is that when we are scheduled with meetings back-to-back throughout our workday or have an unending list of deliverables, it is hard […]

(Author’s Note: I wrote this piece nearly one year ago, on September 11th, 2020. And based on the number of emails and comments I received at the time, it resonated loudly with many. So, with the twentieth anniversary of September 11th, 2001 approaching, we share it again today. Be safe, everyone. — DMB) I love […]

This post was written by Lauren St. Germain, Facilitator and Coach for The Latimer Group. Here at The Latimer Group, we live by the idea that communication skills should no longer be considered a “soft skill.” We believe that communication is a “power skill”, and earlier this year, McKinsey & Company helped prove this to be true […]

In so many organizations, we see discussions around problem solving go wrong. To be an effective problem solving organization, there has to be a framework of questions that will lead towards full alignment on the issue. Once we have that alignment, then we can have a serious conversation around legitimate solutions. In a world where everyone […]