Dean Brenner

Every day is a good day to express some gratitude. But the holiday season seems like an especially good time to pause, reflect, and say “thanks” to those around us. My colleagues and I are putting the finishing touches on our year over the next 24 hours, and will close our office for the holidays […]

Several of our coaching conversations at The Latimer Group lately have been focused around one particular challenge: When I am speaking to my boss, how do I stay out of the weeds? I get stuck in the deep detail, and he/she gets frustrated with me. Sound familiar? “Too much detail” is a constant issue in the […]

Originally published with the Forbes Coaches Council, November 2018. When you speak to an audience — be it a room full of executives, a staff meeting, or a one-on-one phone call with a client — keeping a few key concepts in mind can help you get your message across persuasively and powerfully. Clarity, for example, ensures that […]

The other day I was playing with my kids, and my elder child asked me more about what I do at The Latimer Group. I gave him what I thought was a good answer… “we provide coaching and training to…” But my answer wasn’t super helpful to a nine-year old. So I took another stab […]

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, with a major milestone looming on the horizon. It could be parenthood. It could be experience in my job. It could be the influence of some of the people […]

On November 30, America and the world lost a great man and a good man, with the passing of our 41st President, George Herbert Walker Bush. His passing gives us the excuse to examine him and his legacy… and to take a good, hard look in the mirror. President Bush (often referred to as “41”) […]

Do you want to be an effective communicator? Be more memorable? Do you want people to follow your lead, support your idea, or buy your product or service? Of course you do. When I say “be memorable,” I’m not suggesting that you do something outrageous so that they remember that crazy person who did “x.” […]

This is Thanksgiving week here in the United States, my favorite holiday. Forget for a moment the mythologized origins of the holiday… what I love most about Thanksgiving is the opportunity to pause, take a deep breath, visit with friends and family and give thanks. And it seems to me like this is harder to do […]

Originally published with the Forbes Coaches Council, October 2018. Not everyone is naturally a great communicator. In fact, almost all successful communication — persuasive, engaging, inspiring — is made, not born. It requires preparation, skill and practice. Of course, it takes time, and we all know how little we have of that. What helps is […]

Ask anyone who performs at a high level: athletes, dancers, singers, etc. They all prepare and practice their skills the same way. They break their skill down into smaller “sub-skills,” then practice each one individually, then put them all back together, and their overall skill level has improved. The same is true with communication. “Great […]