Podcast Notes Key Takeaways

• Writing for eyeballs (which people read) is quite different than writing for the ear (which people listen to)
  • When writing for the ear, the prose has to be much clearer and crisper
  • “You’re trying to sculpt information so it can be easily understood by the brain”
• A thought on interviewing:
  • “If the interviewer is good, they’re asking questions in a way that allows the other person to shine”
• What makes for a good conversation?
  • “If someone walks away from a conversation and they didn’t learn anything from the other person, then it wasn’t a successful conversation”
  • “A good conversation is interactive for both people. It doesn’t even allow the other person to tune out.”
  • The best model for a good conversation is a friendly game of catch
    • Why? – In a game of catch, you can’t throw more than you catch – it’s an even balance, just like a conversation should be an even balance between talking and listening
• “Consensus is the enemy of innovation”
  • Our best ideas come during times of cognitive diversity
• Listening is really hard for humans because evolutionarily, we don’t really need to listen well (our survival more so depends on how successful we are at being loud to get the attention of an adult who will helps us)
  • For other species though, the ability to listen well is actually a survival skill
• Don’t listen to reply, listen to consider and understand
• “In everyday life, even when you’re not interviewing someone, the ability to see the world through their eyes…the empathy that creates within you is a necessary component to having a really good conversation” – Shane
• A conversation tip – Try not to equate your experiences with someone else’s
• Harvard released a study a few years back finding that talking about ourselves activated the same areas of the brain as sex and heroine

Read the full notes @ podcastnotes.org



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Speaker, author and radio journalist Celeste Headlee has had decades of experience fine tuning the recipe for engaging and rewarding conversation. She shares some tips to help us instantly improve our conversational skills and meaningfully connect with others.

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