Communication Tips for Leadership - 11 of 15

Communication Tips (SERIES)

Tip #11. Think Twice, Speak Once

We can avoid confusing our audience by getting to the point as quickly as possible.  This less is more approach to communication is most effectively implemented when we have a clear communication objective.  A phrase to keep in mind might be “think twice and speak once.”

Think: How can I get to my point faster?

Speak: Focused message with clear objective.

Communication Tips for Leadership - 12 of 15

Communication Tips  (SERIES)

Tip #12.  Behind Door #3

Our audience can lose faith in us if we demonstrate an underdeveloped thought or behavior.  One way we can avoid this situation is by eliminating pre-determined solutions from our messages.  See below for some options.

Best Practices:

• Removing the “this OR that” wording — it creates two options when there could be many more
• Rewording “THE way to achieve that is…” to state “ONE way to achieve that is…”
• Using the word “options”

We hope this helps make your messages more open and appealing to your audiences.  Good luck!

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Communication Tips   (SERIES)

Tip #13.  Be Relevant

Sharing irrelevant information can make your audience suspicious and/or lose trust in you.  Clearly explaining why you are sharing the information helps remove the potential for confusion or mistrust.  The following will help you provide this clarity to your audience.

Filters:

• Why am I sharing this information?
• How do I see the audience applying this information?
• What do I want the audience to do as a result of this information?

Something to keep in mind is that we don’t want our audience to feel that they are being bombarded with information.  Doing this puts pressure on the audience to (1) make time to read the information, (2) think about it, and (3) determine if their time was well used reading that information.

Communication Tips for Leadership - 14 of 15

Tip #14.  Assume makes an…

Most customers are turned off when we assume to know their needs and how we can fill them.  We can be more effective at building a relationship if we avoid making assumptions and instead encourage a dialogue for deeper understanding.  Below is an example of how our communication style affects how we build relationships with customers.

Pitch:
We can redefine normal for your facility maintenance process.

Result: Conversation ends.

Dialogue:
We like helping redefine what normal is.
Can you help us understand what you think normal could be or should be?

Result: Conversation begins.

You’ll hear the warning “don’t throw up all over yourself” at Resicom offices frequently.  This is a way of saying don’t “word-vomit” about how great we are.  Limit what you say about the great things you do until you understand what great things the prospect needs done.  They will tell you… so listen up!

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Communication Tips (SERIES)

Tip #15. Focus

Messages that have multiple calls to action can be confusing for our audience. We can eliminate this confusion narrowing our focus on one call to action at a time. Be mindful of those things that can remove focus from the main objective of our communication.

Common Distractors:

• Large, prominent logo
• Footnotes of references
• Supporting information (put this in an appendix)

Even if one of our objectives is to increase the visibility of our credibility, we must be careful not to let this objective overpower our other communication objectives.

Complacency Is Not Normal

“Complacency doesn’t make sense for a guy trying to redefine normal.”

-John Fairclough, CEO Resicom

Leadership - Purpose First

Explain WHY before the WHAT

Being defined by what we do limits understanding and communication opportunities.  We remove this constraint by focusing on WHY we do things before we explain WHAT we do.  Below is an example of how Resicom has adopted this non-limiting behavior in our company.

Example:  Our Elevator PitchWe believe in the bold pursuit of what normal could be. We accomplish this by leveraging communication, accountability, and structure to create smarter options. One of the things we do is protect brands through facility maintenance and repair.

1. Why:       We believe in the bold pursuit of what normal could be.
2. How:       We accomplish this by leveraging communication, accountability, and structure, to create smarter options.
3. What:    One of the things we do is protect brands through facility maintenance and repair.

Consider how your approach to communication, structure, and accountability may limit your understanding by focusing on the WHAT more than the WHY.  Reworking this approach creates an opportunity for your coworkers, customers, and community to understand you better.

Leadership - Roles and Ultimate Responsibilities

Assigning Ultimate Responsibilities

An employee is easily underutilized when they are assigned tasks rather than responsibilities. Consider how you can gain a more dedicated advocate for the company by charging employees with ultimate responsibilities.

Example: Our Offer Letters – New Hires
All employees are charged with upholding the core values and executing the strategy of the company. As Sales Manager, your ultimate responsibility will be to ensure your division is profitable. Specific duties and goals will be designated by the Company with an initial focus on (i) business development, (ii) networking, and (iii) active participation in trade organizations.

1. Company-specific: All employees are charged with upholding the core values and executing the strategy of the company.
2. Role-specific: Your ultimate responsibility will be to ensure your division is profitable.
3. Task-specific: Duties and goals will be designated by the Company with an initial focus on…

Every discipline of a company plays a key role in the short- and long-term success of the company. Take a moment to brainstorm how you could communicate these ultimate responsibilities to your team.

Setting Expectations About change

"Change needs practice. And practice needs patience.”


- John Fairclough

Leadership - Is Your Life Balanced?

Many leaders struggle with work/life balance. Many times parts of our lives are sacrificed for the betterment of another. The problem is that we often do not return to build up the sacrificed areas. This exercise will help you identify where you are at and help you put in place activities that bring you your desired outcomes.

Picture your funeral. Three people give eulogies – one family, one business, and one from the community.

• What would they say about you?
• What would you want them to say?

Once you have your answers, you have basically set goals.

Next set of questions would be:

• What do you need to start doing and with what frequency to achieve the goals?
• What do you need to STOP doing to achieve the goals?

Once you have your answers, you can build them into your daily/weekly routine.

Good luck!

What Would You Do, If Only You Had Time?

Sometimes are dreams get put on hold. The things that give us great joy get put on the side to take care of other things. The problem is, we can lose sight of our dreams and our happiness can become elusive.

This exercise helps you examine what you’d do if suddenly you had an opportunity to do something else.

You have been given an opportunity to take an all expenses paid two-year sabbatical. Assumptions:

• Your spouse and family are 100 percent behind you and highly supportive;
• Everything at the company is totally under control, a full executive support team that you trust highly is in place;
• Your doctor says you are healthy enough to do this
• NOTE – In other words, none of the traditional obstacles are in your way.

Instructions:
Take out a clean sheet of paper. Set a time, and in no more than 15 minutes, write down your answer(s) to this scenario:

1. Describe what you think you would do. Where would you go? What would you try to accomplish?
2. Explain what you think you would feel about doing this. Would you like to do it? Why/Why not? Would you decline the opportunity? Why/Why not?
3. Explain what you would try to learn during this period.
4. How do you think you would change after two years? What might be different about you? Could you actually make the change?

Hopefully this clarifies some of the things you would love to do and encourages you to start taking the steps needed to accomplish these goals. We only get one life. Health is often wasted on youth. Realize your dreams.

This exercise has been modified from an exercise provided by UIC’s Family Business Council.