Communication

Since one of my favorite forms of communication are TED Talks… please find three I love about how we can communicate better.

Celeste Headlee: 10 ways to have a better conversation

I have highlighted the ways below, however I recommend this talk to get a little more detail about why these 10 ways are important.

  1. Don't multitask - be present - fully

  2. Don’t Pontificate - enter every conversation believing you have something to learn

  3. Use open ended questions - who what when why how - let them describe it

  4. Go with the flow - thoughts will come in - let them go

  5. If you don’t know - say you don't know

  6. Don't equate their experience with theirs - all experiences are individual - its not about you

  7. Try not to repeat yourself

  8. Stay out of the weeds - don't care about the details - they care about you

  9. ***Listen

  10. Be Brief - be interested in other people

Above all else "Be Prepared to be Amazed"

Melissa Marshall: Talk nerdy to me 

Melissa highlights that when you are talking about something complex there are powerful ways to grab your audiences attention.

  • Highlight what maters to your audience, talk about how it relates to their lives and makes a difference.

  • Do not "dumb" things down but limit the jargon and bullet points.

  • Be passionate - talk about why this excites you.  

    • Personally I always think… if you are excited I am more likely to want to know why.

Amy Cuddy: Your body language may shape who you are

If your have watched Grey's Anatomy… you know about power posing.  Watch this ted talk to remind yourself about how to make your posture powerful, not small.

Communication is far more then the words we say… our body language speaks volumes.

Jennifer L'Heureux