Just Saying - The BRIEF Lab

Call Back Episode – 276 – 5 Mistakes when communicating to busy, burdened leaders. Originally recorded Mar 6, 2023.

Professionals that are in important leadership positions are not only incredibly busy, but also under a lot of pressure to perform and produce. Communicating to them is risky because they can be scattered, irritable, quick to judge and hard to read. In this podcast, I outline five things to consider doing that will keep you on track and them from losing their focus and cool.

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Is active listening one of your superpowers? Do you bail when you are in conversations that don’t interest or connect with you? Are some people easy for you to tune out? Are you easily distracted in conversations? Fundamentally, listening is a choice, not a feeling. And it stands as one of the skills that sets professionals apart.

The post Ep. 405 – The things we hear (aren’t always right) appeared first on Just Saying.

Getting to the root cause is something many people struggle with when they communicate. They spend inordinate amounts of time talking about symptoms, not the underlying condition. In this episode, I share some practical perspectives and a simple mind mapping tool that will help frame the core issue and help you avoid talking endlessly around it.

The post Ep. 404 – What’s the problem? appeared first on Just Saying.

Every leader is going to get tossed a tough question. The question is whether you’ll be ready to respond with clarity, courage and conviction, or fumble with a long and careless response. In this episode, I will get you ready to field a host of hot topics in a way that makes you communicate like a pro.

The post Ep. 403 – Answering tough questions appeared first on Just Saying.

A colleague of mine, Grace Foster, wrote an insightful article for Forbes magazine this summer about the value of English majors in an age of AI. Specifically, she shares the value of “close reading” as a skill that we all should have: slow down, be critical, and understand how to turn good writing into something great. In this episode, I share her perspectives and mine to make this one of your core communication skills.

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There’s a risk of letting AI tools communicate for you. In the business world, it’s being referred to as “AI slop” and leaders are increasingly concerned that their people are succumbing to the allure and ease of AI doing the thinking and communicating for them. This week, I suggest assuming a critical role as editor-in-chief to ensure that your hard, deliberate work of revision will translate into messages that are always authentically yours.

The post Ep. 401 – AI and becoming the editor-in-chief appeared first on Just Saying.

As communicators, where do we fit in a world that is being transformed by artificial intelligence (AI) tools and technologies? Will the technology race beyond the need for our insight and input? Do we factor in at all? In this episode, I propose a humanity-first philosophy and announce the development of BriefBot AI, a digital brevity and clarity companion to help maintain our role as primary communicators.

The post Ep. 400 – My “humanity first” AI philosophy appeared first on Just Saying.

The acronym K.I.S.S challenges us to “keep it simple, stupid.” The problem with that infamous adage is that nobody wants to look stupid, so they avoid simplifying complexity. This week, I discuss why people are so afraid of not looking super smart and the risks they run when they fail to make things easier to understand.

The post Ep. 399 – The Fear of Dumbing it Down appeared first on Just Saying.

A BRIEF Map is a powerful communication tool. The acronym spells it out clearly: background; relevance; information; ending; follow-up. In this episode, I give you the “permission” to modify the R to mean risk. By highlighting related risks, you can help your audience understand quickly why they need to make a decision vs sitting on the fence.

The post Ep. 398 – Changing the “R” in a BRIEF Map appeared first on Just Saying.

There’s a strong, hidden connection between comedy and clarity. When communicating, there’s a fundamental difference between your point (the “what”) and the payoff (the “so what”). The intentional structure and sequence of clarity needs to take a critical cue from joke telling: start strong, and always end with a laugh.

The post Ep. 397 – The Point isn’t the Punchline appeared first on Just Saying.