The other day I was on a conference call with two good friends, one of whom is the CEO of his company. We were catching up on some business issues, and my CEO friend made a comment that stuck with me. His company has had some business transition over the last 12-24 months, and this led to a couple of major communication challenges. And as he reflected on what they might have done better, and as he realized they had not spent enough time thinking through the communication challenges they had, he said “good communication is like the clutch in your car. It helps you switch to a higher gear.”
I paused and thought about it for a bit, and realized that he was exactly correct. I’m not a mechanic, and I’m sure there are more technical explanations on what the clutch actually does. But all I know is that when I want to change gears in my car, I engage the clutch. So too, when I want to change gears with my business, I know I will need to communicate well if the change is going to be successful.
Think about it this way… Whenever you need to ramp up or ramp down something in your business… Whenever you are adding or reducing a capability or a service… Whenever you are adding to or reducing your workforce; Whenever you are doing anything that adds to or subtracts from the current reality of your business, you should think about drafting a communication plan. Because if you don’t, the change is likely to be misunderstood, misinterpreted, or mis-executed.
When you want your car to go faster, you need to go into a higher gear, otherwise the engine will have to work too hard to maintain the higher speed. When you want your car to go slower, you need to go into a lower gear, otherwise your engine won’t be efficient. The same is true with your business. And the clutch that will make the engine of your business more effective and efficient is the communication plan that will help your team, customers, or vendors understand the new reality that you are trying to achieve.
A good communication strategy will help your company change gears without in the most efficient way possible.
Good luck!
Does your team:
– Take too long to make decision?
– Fail to ask for what it wants or needs from you?
– Make things too complicated?
– Deliver unconvincing or disorganized presentations?
– Have new hires who are unprepared to communicate in the workplace?
We transform teams and individuals with repeatable toolsets for persuasive communication.
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