The standing rule is that people tend to most easily believe in conspiracy theories that they create; and tend to reject the conspiratorial thinking of others. The trouble with our concerns about fake news, is that they come from a place where critical thinking has been reduced in favor of Read more…
Before a new baby comes into the world, usually a family diligently prepares for its arrival. The family prepares the environment that the baby will thrive in, from the set-up of the room to the clothes the new baby will come home in. The family prepares their emotional life as Read more…
Most of the time, in conflicts, we engage in listening to the other party long enough to create a counter-argument that supports the narrative we already have in our heads. This is not active listening, it’s passive consumption of content while idly waiting for a turn to speak. This passivity Read more…
The voice is a communication channel. So is a pen, a piece of paper, a keyboard, a desktop computer, or even a mobile phone. So is a television screen, a computer screen, and a mobile phone screen. The eyes, the hands, the body are communication channels. So are mobile applications, Internet platforms, Read more…
Confrontation is the beginning of conflicts, but confrontation can only come about if we have the courage to have a conversation in the first place. Conversation is not confrontation, though conversation may make parties in conflict uncomfortable. Uncomfortable conversations must happen in fierce ways for those conversations to have value, meaning, Read more…
Sometimes a presentation doesn’t “work.” Sometimes there’s no connection with the audience. Sometimes the presenter talks more to themselves than they listen to the crowd. Sometimes questions aren’t asked (or answered) by the audience or the presenter. Sometimes there is no active listening on the part of the audience. Sometimes Read more…
The manipulation is simple, but the consequences are complex. We lament “Why can’t we all just, get along?” and then we proceed to irritate, obfuscate, or deceive the other party. Then we look at them with Alfred E. Nueman’s famous facial expression and metaphorically shrug our shoulders. The problem is Read more…
Remember how easy it was to say “thank you” when you were a child and you had nothing to lose? Yeah…neither do we… And the thing is, as we become fully autonomous adults, with our own minds, motivations, and needs, it becomes less easy than it ever was in childhood. Read more…
Organizations, founders, managers, and employees who are self-aware do better than those who aren’t. This should come as no surprise, but in an economic, social, and even political climate where “knowing thyself” is as mysterious as “knowing thy customers,” it becomes incumbent upon an organization–and the people employed by it–to Read more…
The power of stories is undeniable, particularly around the Thanksgiving holiday. Stories about the Pilgrims. Stories about the country today. Stories about the country yesterday. Stories about the neighborhood. Stories about the family. Thanksgiving is a curious holiday, because at its root, it is about thanking God (who the Pilgrims Read more…