“Coming together is a beginning, keeping together is progress, working together is success” – Henry Ford
To all our highly valued clients and acquaintances:
Don Sardella, Business Development Coach for Financial Advisors and beyond Effective Connecting, Communication & Collaboration
in Times such as Now
It’s Not About The Nail 1 minute, 41 seconds
In the last week, I have experienced a number of miscommunications with people – myself with others, others with me and others with others. It may be time to get back to some basics here, to help us all to be as cool, calm and collected as possible in such emotionally charged times. First, we need to breathe.
What is our intent and purpose for any of our communications, given our most important priorities?
We all know that we are all dealing with a major reality check here – attention management and stress has become a big challenge for many in a wildly disrupted world. How to best settle down as we need?
What do we need to take care of to be as cool, calm and collected as possible, as we increase our capacity to deal with uncertainty and change. Knowing what we now know, now what are we learning?
I have found these ideas to be the 3 pillars of great relationships. Caring, commitment, communication.
#1) We know the maxim “People don’t care how much we know until they know how much we care?”
I rise when others rise – how can we bring our best empathy and patience to all of our communications?
#2) We all have heard a version of what Abraham Lincoln once said about commitment:
“Your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other one thing” Are we all in??
#3) Now, let’s communicate about communication. Some fundamentals to review, as a matter of practice.
The quality of our connecting and the effectiveness of our collaborations are a function of communication.
It’s always been a critical starting and ongoing point for any relationship and situation, which, based upon our level of proficiency with these practices, can make a world of difference with our humanity and work.
Therefore, we want to breathe, take our time and be our best whenever we communicate. Accurate and complete work (living an optimal, fulfilling life?) is a function of accurate and complete communication.
Obviously, always true and maybe feels even more so now, in our current world of dramatically accentuated emotions. If we don’t get it right the first time, how we going to have time to clean it up?
Like a break in an electrical wire, if we don’t have great communication, it’s like having no electricity and no power. I think that we all know that really great communication starts with great, attentive listening.
Building our ‘muscle’ and our practices of listening to listen vs listening to respond. Knowing to whom we speak and for whom we serve. Getting to the heart of a matter, the root causes. Peeling back all the layers of the onion, until we know all there is that we need to know, before we respond. Right now, many people need a shoulder, not a solution, at least as a starting point. A sounding board that cares and understands and allows them to think and feel out loud, while they locate themselves emotionally.
If you are listening this way (as an expression of care and service) for your family, friends and clients, then who is listening to you, the listener? Who is your committed listener, serving as your greatest ally?
What do you need to take care of, to be able to be the best possible listener that you can be for others?
We invite you to pass this newsletter on to anyone for whom you think it would of helpful value.
Let’s keep connecting and authentically communicating – at your listening service,
Coach DonPS – this recently released non-profit “thank you” song may serve you as additional inspiration
Special offer – free (no fee) – for 30 minutes – I’m here to add value & to serve – to be my best and to do my best – I promise at least one idea to help improve your work performance and your well-being.
