tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6163081860421483912024-03-13T10:49:21.953-07:00High Performance CommunicationPractical, instructive tips on how to improve your business results through better communication.
Good business decisions are the product of good communication and Pathfinder Communication is out to change the world, one conversation at a time! Go to www.PathfinderCommunication.comGregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.comBlogger173125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-28628086317434995462014-04-24T19:06:00.002-07:002014-04-24T19:07:42.468-07:00Register for My One Day Communications WorkshopI am happy to report that I will be giving a full-day workshop (seminar) at this year's Project Management Institute Conference on May 16 here in San Diego. The workshop is titled <b>"</b><strong style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; line-height: 20px;">Leading Teams to High Performance" </strong><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">and you</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">can read a little more about it <a href="http://tinyurl.com/lsalp5k" target="_blank">here</a>. </span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">(</span></span><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://pmi-sd.org/index.php/conference/menu-conf-seminars">http://pmi-sd.org/index.php/conference/menu-conf-seminars</a>). </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">Learn more about the this year's conference <a href="http://tinyurl.com/klb7kul" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 20px;">(<a href="http://pmi-sd.org/index.php/conference/menu-conf-welcome">http://pmi-sd.org/index.php/conference/menu-conf-welcome</a></span></span><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 20px;">)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 20px;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 20px;">Learn</span><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 20px;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 20px;">more about the OUTSTANDING PMI Organization in San Diego </span><a href="http://pmi-sd.org/" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 20px;">(<a href="http://pmi-sd.org/">http://pmi-sd.org/</a>)</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-15716607069230515932014-04-24T18:55:00.003-07:002014-04-24T18:55:50.274-07:00Creating a Productive Communication Environment<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Defensiveness is not productive. May seem obvious once it
is said like that, but making something explicit isn’t such a bad thing –
especially if something is not obvious to the person you are speaking to.
Defensiveness is the normal and correct action when someone is feeling
attacked.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Notice I didn’t say being attacked – I said FEELING
attacked.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I have found many times that, in my distant past, I was capable
of feeling attacked when, in reality, I was not. I have certainly had people
tell me (again in the past) that they felt I was attacking them when I wasn’t.
When I felt attacked, I would demonstrate all sorts of clever behaviors to
distance myself from the perceived danger – but whatever behavior I chose, the
lack of safety I felt would KILL my willingness to continue honestly and openly
continuing with the discussion. My goal was to get out alive.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
So – communication stops being productive when either
party feels a lack of trust or safety in the environment.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
There are other elements of a productive communication
environment than the risk of attack, of course. What if the other person isn’t
attacking us at all – but we don’t believe that they care about what we’re
saying? Or that they do care, but they aren’t open to try anything other than
their current idea? That doesn’t feel very productive, and we may act out when
we sense this happening (acting out unspoken feelings is the whole basis of the
study of body language, by the way – we all do it). Sometimes we act out
verbally, too, and if the other person feels attacked by this, things spiral
the wrong way.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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A productive communication environment is one in which:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->It is safe to tell the truth<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->We intend to arrive at the conclusion that satisfies
our most important objectives<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->We intend to arrive at the conclusion that is
not objectionable to any stakeholder<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
One of the ways we can make the communication environment
productive is be explicit about these things and mean them. To ENSURE that
everyone in the conversation knows EXPLICITLY (by saying it) that it is safe to
tell the truth hear – we need to be free to share exactly what we think. I know
how scary that sounds (and I know why you picture the conversation immediately
turning into a fight) when you think of saying it, but sometimes it’s best to
make it obvious, and this is one of those times.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Once you and the people you are speaking with believe the
three bullets I wrote above, then you (not they) need to know how to facilitate
that conversation. I say “you” because it only takes ONE competent communicator
in the room to handle most any situation, and I have picked YOU to be the
competent communicator.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Next
time, we’ll talk about the THREE things you need to know to perform your new
role.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-17602846080857630932014-04-12T23:45:00.002-07:002014-04-12T23:45:54.700-07:00Not tools so much as an environment...<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I spent a big percentage of the last few years teaching
others what I have learned about making communication at work productive. I was
asked a while ago by one of my clients “What are the tools used and the responsibilities
of each person engaged in a productive conversation?” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
It seems that this is the way we like to imagine these
conversations being held – each of us having an equal part in the conversation
and the outcome. I believe that particular expectation is an obstacle to
productive communication, and that by changing that expectation of “equal
participation” one can begin to make things productive.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Most of us recognize that there will naturally be differences
between people in our work place. That is, in almost any pairing of two people one
person is a better listener, or more articulate, or more withdrawn, or more
distracted…… the list of differences is quite long.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
When we walk away from a conversation thinking that the
other party doesn’t listen, doesn’t speak up, is scary to talk to …. THAT is
when we recognize the differences and have bad feelings. The bad feelings are
because our needs weren’t met – we NEEDED them to be effective and they weren’t
which leaves us unsatisfied with the conversation. Further, it seems that this THEIR
fault and is not fixable unless they change.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
But it IS – we just have to change the “equal
participation” expectation. And understanding that makes it easier to describe
the use of the “tools”.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
There is a kind of “ideal” environment for conducting
conversations. That environment is not very necessary when we are discussing
the “easy” things – non-controversial, obvious, simple, low-impact topics – and
vital when we are discussing the hard things – poor performance or failures,
bad news, high-impact things. In other words, maintaining the environment to
conduct difficult conversations becomes most important at the very same time
that the topics demand the most focus. If we don’t appreciate maintaining the
right environment, or if we don’t know how, it is easy to think that TOPIC or
the PEOPLE involved are what made the conversation implode. But usually, it is
that we didn’t maintain a good environment.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Communication tools
and techniques are used to promote the optimum environment. Next week, we’ll
talk about what that environment looks like exactly, and then discuss the tools
used to create it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-54248183490845129962013-06-30T18:10:00.003-07:002013-06-30T18:10:55.071-07:00Speaking in San Diego on July 9thI'll be talking about how to combine some of the things I've been writing about for the last few months...should be fun. I can't wait to see you again.<br />
For more info, including location and sign-up - <a href="http://www.asqsandiego.net/meetings/" target="_blank">go here (ASQ San Diego)</a><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-45827707085594847952013-06-10T12:21:00.001-07:002013-06-10T12:21:04.203-07:00Controlling How We Are Perceived<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
We develop an impression of others pretty quickly, and we
are wired to be flexible with the first impression IF we see evidence that we
are wrong (“when I first met her, she seemed a little ditzy, but I could see
after just one real conversation that she was better versed than I on a lot of
subjects”). If evidence indicates we are right (and sometimes, if we just NEED
to be right) our impression will develop into something stronger (like an
opinion) and we may even “upgrade” its status to a “fact”. My point is that how
people perceive us can be controlled.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
It is easiest to influence their perceptions at the
beginning of a relationship because we are wired to be flexible at first and
become more rigid as we find evidence. We even refer to the process as
“forming” an opinion. If someone is forming an opinion about us, WE are the
source of the evidence. And even if they know something about us from a
different source, we provide the evidence that they can use to modify that
opinion of us, until their judgment of us is aligned with the evidence they
have.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
This sounds like an opportunity to “pretend to be someone
that you aren’t”, but it isn’t. It is an opportunity to determine behaviors
that may be holding you back (or coloring people’s perception of you in an
unflattering way) and tailoring them to portray your true feelings and thoughts
in a way that they can easily understand them. That is, to be more transparent
and accessible, less cryptic.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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In short we can present ourselves in a way that promotes
productive and beneficial working relationships without being false or fake in
any way – just by have the a full understanding of how we actually feel, and
how to communicate that to the world. I will make some suggestions as to how
excellent communicators and leaders typically feel about relationships and
common ways those feelings manifest themselves. You MUST tailor these to suit
who you are – you should seldom use someone else’s words to express your own
feelings. <i>NOTE - beware self-help advice
that offers you “scripts” – if your words don’t align with your feelings and
actions, the people you are trying to communicate with will identify you as a
fake. Think of the people you have known whose words didn’t align with their
actions. How did you feel about them?</i> <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
My suggestions (from the last newsletter) were as
follows:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Giving the benefit of the doubt as far as our
counterpart’s motives<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Using inquiry like a journalist would and
listening to answers<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Working actively to prevent defensiveness<o:p></o:p></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Being honest and explicit<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I will expand a
little on those and give you an overview of a model I named THE SCORE to help
you remember the elements. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The objective is to be a person that does not promote
defensiveness in others. Defensiveness is the primary reason that people are not
open and honest at work – they think what they say will somehow cause them
trouble, so they “defend” against that trouble in a MYRIAD of ways. My method
(THE SCORE) is a method that requires only three things:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->1)<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->You know what makes for good communication<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->2)<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Adjust YOUR way of communicating to conform with
those rules (in YOUR unique way), and<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->3)<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Facilitate other people in communicating in that
same way (usually, without them knowing it).<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I will teach you these things, so don’t worry that you
don’t know them now – you will over the next few weeks. As you begin to
practice them, others will just see you as the kind of person they can talk to
about anything and it will seem natural to do so. They will feel that way
because you will SHOW them that you are that kind of person.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Some of the ways we promote defensiveness in others are
listed in the table below. Ways to PROMOTE DEFENSIVENESS (detract from good
communication) are in the first two columns). Ways to INHIBIT DEFENSIVENESS
(encourage good communication) are in the last two columns.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
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<div align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Example Behaviors that Promotes
Defensiveness<o:p></o:p></b></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 94.5pt;" valign="top" width="126">
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<b>Common Names for Bad Behavior<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 2.25in;" valign="top" width="216">
<div align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Behavior to Inhibit Defensiveness<o:p></o:p></b></div>
</td>
<td style="border-left: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 77.4pt;" valign="top" width="103">
<div align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Common Names for Good Behavior<o:p></o:p></b></div>
</td>
</tr>
</thead>
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<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 144.9pt;" valign="top" width="193">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Acting as if your ideas are fully formed, vetted, and
can’t be improved upon. Input or
critique is not welcomed<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 94.5pt;" valign="top" width="126">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Arrogance, Closed-mindedness<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 2.25in;" valign="top" width="216">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Explicitly stating that our ideas have some room for
improvement. Use other’s involvement in the formulation of ideas to create
buy-in <o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 77.4pt;" valign="top" width="103">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Tentativeness; Humility<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 2; page-break-inside: avoid;">
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 144.9pt;" valign="top" width="193">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Ignoring or arguing with the feelings or opinions of
others such that you indicate that they don’t matter (or don’t exist)<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 94.5pt;" valign="top" width="126">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Self-centered; Isolated; “Steamroller”; Disconnected<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 2.25in;" valign="top" width="216">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Explicitly demonstrating an understanding of the
feelings and opinions of others, considering them, and expressing that they are important;
Speaking kindly, giving the benefit of the doubt<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 77.4pt;" valign="top" width="103">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Empathetic; Fair-minded<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 3; page-break-inside: avoid;">
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 144.9pt;" valign="top" width="193">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Using vocabulary or terms that is not familiar to the
person with whom we are trying to communicate; or using vocabulary that is
aimed below their level of capability<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 94.5pt;" valign="top" width="126">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Snobbish; Show-off; Talking Down; Confusing<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 2.25in;" valign="top" width="216">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Using vocabulary chosen specifically for the people
with whom we are communicating (defining unfamiliar acronyms, using two
syllable words, explicitly asking for understanding, watching non-verbal cues
for confusion)<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 77.4pt;" valign="top" width="103">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Simple; Clear; Meaningful<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 4; page-break-inside: avoid;">
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 144.9pt;" valign="top" width="193">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Using prepared “boilerplate” information that doesn’t
take the specific audience into account; Using words to manipulate; offering
weak excuses<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 94.5pt;" valign="top" width="126">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Insincere; Manipulative; Dishonest; Condescending<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 2.25in;" valign="top" width="216">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Speak from the heart, being kind and honest ; being
fair and firm<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 77.4pt;" valign="top" width="103">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Sincere<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 5; page-break-inside: avoid;">
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 144.9pt;" valign="top" width="193">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Telling rather than asking; listening<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 94.5pt;" valign="top" width="126">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Closed minded; Disconnected; Rude<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 2.25in;" valign="top" width="216">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Asking questions, including follow-up questions to
answers<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 77.4pt;" valign="top" width="103">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Curious<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 6; page-break-inside: avoid;">
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 144.9pt;" valign="top" width="193">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Acting as if your ideas are fully formed, vetted, and
can’t be improved upon. Input or
critique is not welcomed; Cutting others off<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 94.5pt;" valign="top" width="126">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Closed minded; Arrogant; Rude; <o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 2.25in;" valign="top" width="216">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Sharing the weak points of your own position; asking
for suggestions; listening summarizing to assure understanding; weighing
trade-offs; changing your mind when warranted<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 77.4pt;" valign="top" width="103">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Open<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 7; page-break-inside: avoid;">
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 144.9pt;" valign="top" width="193">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Cutting others off; insulting; dismissing their ideas
without reasoning<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 94.5pt;" valign="top" width="126">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Disrespectful; Rude<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 2.25in;" valign="top" width="216">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Listening; fully considering proposed ideas; giving
reasons for disagreement<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 77.4pt;" valign="top" width="103">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Respectful<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="mso-yfti-irow: 8; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes; page-break-inside: avoid;">
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 144.9pt;" valign="top" width="193">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Holding multiple discussions at a time; not focusing
one someone speaking to you; multitasking (phone, email) while someone is
discussing something important with you<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 94.5pt;" valign="top" width="126">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Disrespectful; Disengaged; Disingenuous<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 2.25in;" valign="top" width="216">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Focusing your attention on your counterpart;
rescheduling discussions based on their priority in order to give attention<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid windowtext .5pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; width: 77.4pt;" valign="top" width="103">
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Engaged<o:p></o:p></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I suggest you look through the first two columns to identify
the things that POOR COMMUNICATORS IN YOUR LIFE currently do that detract from
good communication. It is usually easiest to see these things in others,
especially those that already bother us. Then look at what GOOD BEHAVIORS they
would have to implement to improve the situation. Wouldn’t things be better if
they would do them? <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Then look through the first two columns looking for
things that YOU might do. I found it useful in my life to ask people if they
thought any of the names in the second column applied to me. I wouldn’t ask
them to explain, and I wouldn’t try to tell them they were wrong, or give
excuses….. I would just thank them. Then I would practice the behaviors in the
last two columns that were prescribed. It is difficult for people to tell us
our short comings (unless they trust us). If you find that your circle of
co-workers find you perfect, you need to search yourself. Are they just afraid
to tell you the truth? If you are truly perfect, then I need you as a mentor.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
THE SCORE is a model that I created that stands for:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Tentative<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Humility<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Empathy<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Simplicity (and Sincerity)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Curiosity<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Open<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Respectful<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Engaged<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The right hand column in the table above corresponds with
the model elements. We will go into detail on these elements next time.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-1662082530453380292013-05-21T13:55:00.001-07:002013-05-21T13:55:26.365-07:00Productive Relationships<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
This is a big moment. In the last two newsletters, we've talked about WHO to talk to and WHAT to talk to them about in order to make
changes in the way company works. This week, we are going to start talking
about HOW to accomplish what we want.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The reason I call it a big moment is that we are going to
talk about YOU, and why you need to change the way you talk to people to get
the results you want.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Some people believe that one is either born with
communication talent or not, and it can’t be learned.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I am telling you it can.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Many people don’t believe that a change in their
perspective will cause a change in their communication results.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I am here to tell
you it will.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Some people feel that it is unfair that they should have
to learn these skills when it makes the communication better for EVERYONE when
they practice it. It’s like they are carrying the load for everyone.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I am saying “So what?”…. If you want to have great
results, you have to put in some extra work. What’s unfair about that?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
If you are still with me, and are willing to do the work,
I’ll show you HOW to approach others such that they want very much to work with
you because they know you value them and lead them into better results than
they can get elsewhere.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I speak to professional organizations, university
classes, and companies routinely about the things that cause them issues at
work and the people I meet almost always tell the same story.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i><span style="font-size: 9.0pt;"> “Our people are
all good at what they do. I mean, the engineers are all good engineers, the
project managers now what they are doing, the production personnel are capable
of doing great work… but they don’t TALK to each other until something goes
wrong, then they work hard to RE-DO what they could have done in the FIRST
PLACE if they just would have talked about it. They blame EACH OTHER for the
communication problems, and say that management doesn’t hold people accountable
(meaning ‘they don’t fire the people that I think they should’). It’s this way
everywhere, and I don’t think there is a good solution”.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
This should give you a good idea of how important being a
good communicator is; it is a widespread problem, it is the root cause for many
of our routine problems (if we communicated well, a great MANY problems go away),
and it is about LISTENING, TALKING, and THINKING in certain ways that tend to
get better results. This means it is the key to great results AND involves changing the way we do our most
common activities, so we have lots of opportunities to practice and can get
better quickly.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
We need first to consider just ourselves. We know about
the things that make us uncomfortable in communication and instead of thinking
about our counterpart making us uncomfortable, we are going to concentrate on
doing what WE can do to make them comfortable. If we do this, we are much more
likely to put them in a frame of mind in which they will be cooperative and
THAT is when we will begin achieving what we want to achieve. This is 70% of
good communications –keeping the right frame of mind. THIS IS THE HARD PART.
Once you are through it, you will get better results than most of the people
you know. Until you practice it about 25 times, it will feel very wrong (if you
are doing it right). Then, you will never want to go back to the way you used
to communicate.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The principles we will use are:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Giving the benefit of the doubt as far as our
counterpart’s motives</li>
<li>Using inquiry like a journalist would and listening to
answers</li>
<li>Working actively to prevent defensiveness</li>
<li>Being honest and explicit</li>
</ul>
Many of us know that these contribute to good
communication, but have trouble doing them. The reason for our current trouble
(after training lots of people that have had that trouble) is that they never
thought about a way to do them all together. For instance, we have all seen
someone say something that resulted in defensiveness in someone else, while the
speaker thought they were just being “honest and explicit”. Experiences like that
give us very strong mental examples that tell us “you just can’t GET any better”,
say things like “the truth hurts”, and
blame the communication issue on the other person.<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
You may be doing these things already, or you may think
you are and actually aren’t; either way, I will outline how I want you to
approach it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Giving the benefit of the doubt is pretty easy – just
recognize that it is not necessary to understand your counterpart’s reasons for
having their opinions .Unless you are sure that they are purposely lying to you
in order to cause you to think something that isn’t true, then that is good
enough for now. What you DO need is a full understanding of their opinions –
that will tell you what you need to know about their reasoning. Later, we will
learn to examine their story with them and find the answers to any important
questions (like – are they being honest).<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Using inquiry is something we will talk about a lot going
forward because it is the first new skill that you will need. Not that it is
new to everyone, but if it IS, you will find it a little different than what
you are used to and difficult because of that. Inquiry is a method to
collaboratively compare multiple points of view to find the best “parts” and
build the best ideas out of those parts. I have written a couple of articles on
MY model of Inquiry (the SPIRAL model) and you can refer to them <a href="http://pathfindercomm.blogspot.com/2011/12/answering-questions-about-claims.html">here</a>
and <a href="http://pathfindercomm.blogspot.com/2012/01/backing-up-your-statements.html">here</a>.
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
“Working actively to prevent defensiveness” and “Being
honest and explicit” are accomplished using the other model I developed called “The
Score”. I have written a lot about it over the last few years and you can find
past newsletters on the subject <a href="http://pathfindercomm.blogspot.com/search?q=score">here</a> and a paper
written on the subject at my website<a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.net/The%20SCORE.pdf"> here</a>. The paper
has a flyer attached to a 3 day class I was offering when I wrote it. Please
ignore it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-61119027811333666472013-04-28T22:31:00.003-07:002013-04-28T22:31:54.291-07:00What to Demonstrate to Your Company's Key Staff (And a Rare Public Class Announcement)<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Last time we talked about who you want to talk to in
order to affect the culture and introduce your ideas into consideration. There
will be lots more on that later, because finding the right people is pretty
critical in getting your ideas adopted. This time we want to talk about WHAT
you say to them, and maybe a little on HOW you say it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
There are a few things you want to accomplish in your
conversations that are not intuitive and how you are viewed has a big impact on
your success with accomplishing them. Let’s talk about how you would like to be
perceived in order be considered as a key employee by a typical employer.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<b>You are serious
about contributing the company’s success and are capable of doing so.<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
</div>
<ul>
<li>This means you are recognized as credible by those
employees that matter (those outside of your regular circle that shape company
culture and, of course, your peers and immediate superiors). They know that you
are appropriately educated and trained, that you get good results, and that you
make extra effort when needed. You don’t talk about doing work in order to “keep
so-and-so off my back”, but instead talk about your reason for doing the work as
achieving an objective or meeting a goal that is important to the company.
Become aware of the goals and objectives that your tasks support. If you were a
manager, and you needed help on something important, you would want someone
that has demonstrated their ability to recognize important tasks and place
their effort on them.</li>
<li>In order to make it clear that you are this person, you
may want to talk SPARINGLY about your education, your training, and your
experience in past jobs but remember this (important note here – EXPERTS are considered
more credible if their education, training, and experience enable them to
EXPLAIN what is right or wrong about a specific action. Experts that refer to
their education, training, and experience in order to AVOID giving explanations
are likely to be perceived as blowhards.)</li>
<li>It is also important that you share your track record of success,
both at your current employer and prior, and that you do it sparingly. You must
not be seen as a braggart because braggarts are generally suspected of
exaggerating and exaggerating is a form of dishonesty that undermines your
credibility. A good way to encourage others to help spread word of your
successes independently is to ALWAYS give credit publicly for the
accomplishments of others. If you do this, people will want to reciprocate by
talking of yours. Do not, however, engage in false modesty or give credit where
it is not due.</li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<b>You are serious
about work, and you also have a life outside doing things that are interesting
and aligned with the values of the key employees at your company.<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
</div>
<ul>
<li>This means that you prioritize work highly in the way you
live your life, and the things you do outside of work are like the things that
the key people at your work do. This one worries some people in that they think
that I am recommending that they change “who they are”. I would not recommend
that you change anything about your character for anyone but yourself. Change
is good if it is needed, and you are the judge of that. What I AM pointing out
is that part of creating a connection with the key people in your organization
is to demonstrate how you are LIKE them.</li>
<li>I’ll give you an example – many of the
people with whom I work are charitable givers. That is, they give money or time
to the community. I was not giving to any charities, so I found a couple that
aligned with who I am and began to be involved. I found it enriching, made me
feel good, and when I would bring it up at work (usually in a regular old “what
did you do last weekend” talk) people saw me as the kind of person that they
can respect – someone like them. Not because I faked it, but because I found a
way to do it that was true to who I am.</li>
<li>As we get deeper into the study of persuasion
and influence, we will talk about the work of Robert Cialdini. In his research,
he found that people are persuaded more easily by people that the feel are like
themselves. Find a few ways in which you are truly like those with whom you
work, and demonstrate it. DON’T try to be someone you aren't – be who you are
and show those parts of your character that are like theirs.</li>
</ul>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<b>You can intake
information, analyze it, and create and articulate courses of action that are organized,
actionable, and likely to be effective.<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
</div>
<ul>
<li>This is a skill which we will cover off and on through
this series of articles. Being able to get data (that is, research issues and
ask questions) is really rare and knowing how to do it will set you apart.
Being able to ask someone questions about a sensitive topic, getting the truth,
and improving the relationship with them is the hallmark of an expert and we
will walk through many techniques to do this. After you get the information,
you need to be able to weigh it out and find a course of action.</li>
<li>This is a largely
collaborative process and, again, being able to guide such discussions is very
rare but we will learn how to do it and build teams and commitment at the same
time. It is critical that we can collaborate with others without much ego and
help them focus their individual expertise on effective collaborative outcomes.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<b>You can operate
with some ambiguity in your work.<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
</div>
<ul>
<li>Many times one has to work through trade-offs (when
changing things means that some things improve and other things get worse) or
solutions that improve the short term at the sake of the long term, or vice
versa. Learning to recognize these instances and talk through the relative
benefits and penalties is an important skill to elite team members.</li>
<li>For an
example, many times in order to reduce rework that results from a poorly run
process, I have found that we need to add a little planning work. The addition
of planning in many cases reduces the OVERALL costs or time of the process but
the PLANNING time is increased. The folks responsible for the planning think I am
crazy – that I am just making things take longer and they are right from THEIR
perspective. Overall, though, we reduce cost which is what we need to do from
an OVERALL perspective. After we are sure that we have reduced overall cost by
doing a little more planning, THEN we try to find ways to do the planning more
efficiently so we can reduce the time it takes to do that.</li>
<li>By being able to recognize,
articulate, and work through the ambiguities with all team members, you become
increasingly valuable.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The topics above are four critical ways you can strive to
be perceived if you want to start working on the culture of your organization.
Study them to find ways you can begin living them at your work. Remember to
always be yourself – don’t abandon the principles that are important to you in
order to fit in. <i><u>Emphasize and demonstrate the parts of you fit in with your
organization’s elite team.</u></i><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
As for any skills that you may need to develop or refresh
to assist, <i><u>I am anticipating conducting a class this spring / summer again. The
cost will be $199 total and will take 3 days. If you are interested, let me
know</u></i>. If there is enough interest, I will select dates that work around my
existing private classes so that we can have a group class for any that are
interested. As many of you long time readers know, I have been booked with
private classes for the last two years so this “open to the public” class is a
rare opportunity to be guided through these high-performance communication
principles. Write to <a href="mailto:Gregg@PFComm.com">Gregg@PFComm.com</a> <span style="text-transform: uppercase;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-12479903570545529522013-04-14T01:57:00.000-07:002013-04-14T01:57:13.153-07:00Productive Working Relationships<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
When I talk about creating productive relationships, keep
in mind that I am talking about working relationships in which you and others
set objectives, exchanging ideas, execute tasks, and achieve results in a work
setting and that you want to personally participate in making those objectives meaningful,
the exchanges productive and useful, the execution crisp, and the results
powerful and sustainable. That is what I am shooting for. It is a pleasant side
effect of this teaching that it will also help you with any relationship in
your life.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
If a relationship at work is to be productive, then it
means that both parties must be able to produce value, meaning they must both
contribute to accomplishing objectives. When we spoke about credibility last
time, we spoke about how you can measure your own and other people’s for that
very reason. I find it useful to find the people that the organization already
finds credible and come to know them and understand their strengths and
weaknesses in order to find a way to be valuable to them.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
This is NOT brown-nosing or kissing up to powerful
people. This is looking at the people that company depends on, assessing them, finding
a way for your strengths to support them in getting results AND determining new
strengths you should develop to increase your value. This is a time-tested way
to become a “go to” person. The first step is to identify the right people.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I have found that all companies have times of crisis when
they pull their best and brightest together to get them through a rough patch.
They even give them names sometimes like “Tiger Team” or “SWAT Team”. They are
the ones that are called on when things get tough. Keep your eyes open and you
will see them when called into action. Those are the people with whom you want
to start your networking. It may seem intimidating to start at the top, but
these are the people you want to get to know. As long as you have a good method (which we will be developing over the next few newsletters) they will be excited to get the help.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
These week was about WHO to talk to. We will go into specifics about HOW to get to know them
and WHAT to talk about next time.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-24716526991998910952013-03-30T00:31:00.001-07:002013-03-30T15:43:31.301-07:00Asessing and Improving Credibility<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
To matter in a conversation, your thoughts must be perceived
as helpful. This is a MAJOR hurdle for many people and, until they adjust their
priorities so that being perceived as credible is number one, almost no amount
of training will help their communication effectiveness. Your PERCEIVED CREDIBILITY determines if
others will:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Actively exclude you from discussions<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Politely dismiss what you say<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Listen carefully when you speak<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Seek you out for your input <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Your perceived credibility is reflected in the actions of
others as I listed above. Whether you are being ignored or shunned, or sought
out by others for your input, it is <u>their</u> perception of you that is at
the root. So it is NOT up to them to find a way to see you in a different
light; it is up to YOU determine if you are credible, improve it as necessary,
and demonstrate it so they can see it. This article is about changing that
perception by demonstrating your credibility, taking steps to become more
credible, and revising behaviors that undermine your credibility.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Whether we are analyzing our own credibility or someone else’s,
we need to understand what it is made of and what evidence we will accept. Credibility
has three components, and each has some evidence that should be considered when
analyzing your own, or someone else’s:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->1)<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Competence<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l2 level2 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">Þ<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Background, like education and training, conveys
competence. The usual examples are diplomas and certificates.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l2 level2 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">Þ<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Track record or history of good results.
Reputation, testimonials, or examples of high-quality work produced is used as
evidence.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l2 level2 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">Þ<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Currency of subject matter knowledge.
Demonstrating up-to-date knowledge of the topic demonstrates passion. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->2)<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Trustworthiness<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l2 level2 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">Þ<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Truthfulness is evidence of trustworthiness,
especially if truthfulness runs contrary to self-interest.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l2 level2 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">Þ<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Demonstrated reluctance to distort facts (exaggerate
or downplay)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l2 level2 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">Þ<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Demonstrated reluctance to overplay emotions for
dramatic effect (Drama Queens and Kings)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l2 level2 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">Þ<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Ability to recognize your own bias and temper
its impact<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->3)<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Dynamism<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l2 level2 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">Þ<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Optimistic<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l2 level2 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">Þ<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Eager to succeed (but not manic)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l2 level2 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">Þ<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Engaged with team members<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Pretending to be credible when you aren't is a short-term
approach to solving a credibility issue. I recommend a long-term solution. If you are not being treated as
credible, it is important that you do some self-evaluation (using the above as
a checklist). Find the areas where YOU feel you are lacking, and determine what
you are willing to do about them. If you are weak in one area, you can
compensate for it by getting MUCH stronger in another. I have known many people
that were prone to exaggerate, but were still considered credible because they
had a long track record of good results.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The best approach is to write a few ideas about where you
rank yourself on each of them. If you feel a little pain surrounding one, you
might be one to something. Determine which you think are holding you back,
regardless of how you feel about fixing it and prioritize those as to which you
think you can do something about.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Examples - </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
If you feel that you are dismissed by your coworkers
because you are considered to be “not serious”, then realize from their point
of view you may not be eager to succeed or engaged enough to take seriously.
You should concentrate on demonstrating your commitment to tasks and coworkers.
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
If you feel that you are dismissed by your coworkers
because you are considered to be “under skilled”, then realize from their point
of view you may not be skilled to take seriously. You should concentrate on relating
your track record, or adding to your examples of high-quality work. Just a note
– degrees and certificates are almost bare minimum requirements these days . If these are all you have, you need to produce
and be able to share examples of high-quality work product that is meaningful
to the topic in order to increase your credibility.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
The most obvious (and for some, the most difficult) thing
to do is to stop distorting facts with exaggeration or downplaying. Oh – and be
nice, but work hard.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
Frankly, most people I run into have the skills they need. The problems are in two areas:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>They are either trying to consult on things for which they don't have the credibility needed. That is, they mean well, but the company has people that know more about the issues under discussion.</li>
<li>They are credible, but have weak relationships or bad relationships with key people. We will begin addressing relationship next time.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
If you need more help on these, give me a call.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-65885498202046284942013-03-24T22:26:00.001-07:002013-03-24T22:26:46.935-07:00Culture Busting<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
When we talk about company culture, the conversation
often goes right off the rails. The conversation is generally about practices
that are ridiculous, unwritten rules, and people that are frequently
characterized and “crazy” or “idiotic”.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I remember when I viewed the people I worked with the
same way. I described myself as “astonished” or “amazed” at what some “idiot”
had done. “Any child would know better!” I would say. But I wouldn’t talk to
them about it. It wouldn’t do any good PLUS they were friends with the bosses
and I would get fired.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I didn’t spend a LOT of my career thinking that way,
because I was a single father and HAD to keep a job continuously – I couldn’t “job
hop”. With the economy the way it is now, I am sure there are lots of you that
feel the same pressure.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I decided I had to talk to someone – my boss – about some
of these things. He wasn’t very much help. He kind of patted me on the head and
asked me to figure out how to work with it because it wasn’t changing any time
soon.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I waited until I once again was the recipient of some
work that was all screwed up in a way that was INDEFENSIBLE. “NOW I have them!”,
I thought. “Certainly I can get them to
change this!” I confronted the guilty party and we argued bitterly, me telling
them that what they did was stupid and them telling me that I didn't know what I
was talking about… that everything was fine and exactly as it should be and if I
knew ANYTHING I would know that. Which of course is impossible – I know EXACTLY
what’s right. Don’t I? So in this guy’s version of the story, I am the idiot.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I immediately got
busy coming to understand what was happening with this instance. I found he was
doing things just as he was instructed, the instructions that were given to me
were new, and the person that gave me the instruction hadn’t considered all of
the factors.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
What I realized YEARS later was that the reason I called
the one guy an idiot, AND the reason I imagined there was some “unseen hand”
guiding all this, and that talking to them wouldn’t do any good was because I was
afraid. I was afraid that the confrontation would go bad, I was angry that I had
to do it in the first place (why not my boss), I was afraid I would be
embarrassed, and I had imagined all kinds of things from a fist fight to long
term hurt feelings. All of the things wrong
were things going on in my head because of what I was not paying attention to
the FACTS and being manipulated by my fear of what MIGHT happen.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
This obviously had less to do with “the company culture”
and what I THOUGHT the company culture was. I set about to prove this by
learning to act differently. I began saying “I am going to assume that everyone
here just wants us to do well. I am going to say that THAT is the company
culture, and act accordingly”. Things got a lot better, but I also found out
that my assumption wasn’t necessarily true, that there were lots of people that
were not very concerned about the company at all. So after learning that the
company wouldn’t just get rid of them, I needed to find a way to get the most
out of them to move the company forward. More than that, the process had to build
the people in the process, and make them feel more engaged and more able. Even
though I can’t make everyone feel the way I feel , I can help many of them see
that working in a successful company, and being a big part of a company’s
success, is better than the alternative.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
There are 11 steps to doing better. The first five are:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
</div>
<ol>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">1.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Establish credibility</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">2.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Develop productive relationships</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">3.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Begin optimizing your communication style</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">4.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Learn to coach</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">5.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Learn to manage and lead</span></li>
</ol>
<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I will start working through each of them next time, and
you will learn quickly and easily how to get more satisfaction and cooperation
than you ever have. Until then, look at the things that make it hard for you to
get excited about your job. Notice how your coworkers are apparently fully
competent in their jobs, but they are hard to work with. Consider the
possibility that they don’t have to change for it to become easier.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-30187594477646937602013-01-06T18:17:00.001-08:002013-01-06T18:18:31.693-08:00Decisions - Impact and Consequence<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In making a decision, it is certainly important to know
what we are changing from, what we are changing to, and why. The impact and
consequences gives us information about the “why”. First, let’s define our
terms because lots of people confuse “impact” and “consequence”, or fail to see
a difference. In this discussion, we need to be able to distinguish them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">“Impact” will be the term we use to describe the direct
effect of a problem. The direct effect of a bad design, for instance, could be
a safety problem. A different direct effect could be reduced sales. Same cause,
two different impacts. “Consequence” will be the term we use to describe the
result of the Impact. The consequence of a safety issue could be a law suit OR
a loss of reputation OR guilt from causing injury – OR all three. The
consequence of reduced sales could be cash flow problems OR distributor
defections OR unattractiveness to investors. So we have a cause (bad design)
that impacts us in two ways and those impacts have a variety of consequences.
We want to avoid some or all of the consequences, so we need to mitigate the
impacts that bring those consequences about.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Determining the impact and potential consequences arising
from a current situation helps us estimate the importance (or “size”) of the
issue that we face. This estimate will guide us to a better understanding of
the resources we are willing to commit to correcting it. By the same token,
estimating the impact and consequences associated with any proposed solutions
or changes to the current situation will help us determine the value of the
proposal relative to the “size” of the current situation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">It is important to discuss the impact and consequences
upfront. As we all know, crises seem to come in waves at times, and if we must
keep the critical issues visible until they are contained, else we will find
ourselves “swamped” with issues that all “Top Priority”!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">One would like to be able to estimate and express the
amount of impact and likely consequence and benefit from a problem scenario
(“current state”) and a solution scenario (“proposed state” or “future state”)
in order to assign the correct priority and resources.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A perfect decision making process would
completely and correctly predict all possible consequences from all possible
outcomes of a decision. This is seldom possible, so we try to get as close as
is practical.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The first thing to
do is</b> to understand the universe of CONSEQUENCES that we face. If they are
trivial, we may choose not to expend any resources at all in mitigating the
impacts. If they are significant, then we will determine the impacts for them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The next things I
talk about are</b> the impacts that carry the consequences we just discussed
and NOT the potential solutions. I do this for several reasons, and here are
two: first, it gives us an idea of the kind of work it will take to repair it.
If we have the kinds of resources required already in-house, we can control
when to begin working on a solution. Secondly, it makes the issue far more real
to have a realistic discussion of how it harms us. Before anyone decides we
aren’t going to do anything about it at this time, I like to remind them that
we all said it carried a certain impact. Are we willing to live with it?
Usually, if we have discussed it openly and fully (and I try to make sure we
really explore impact), we look at things very carefully before moving on.
Impact of not being sufficiently profitable, for instance, is that we don’t
have money for training or internal research and development, or other
important things.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>I then move to a discussion about</strong> the “Ostrich Consequence”.
This is the impact to us if we don’t do anything. For instance, if we don’t do
anything about our profitability, and don’t train our people or do sufficient
research and development, we will certainly become less competitive and will
likely go out of business. I cover this so that everyone that is working on the
problem has an explicit understanding of what we think will happen if we do nothing.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I like to let everyone that can do something about the
problem participate in the “Impact and Consequences” discussion so that things
can be very real. This has a strong emotional charge to it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-41319833388771933122012-10-21T18:46:00.001-07:002012-10-21T18:46:16.488-07:00Decisions - Emotions and Logic
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">So far, I have suggested that getting good results from
our decisions is strongly correlated to employing an improved decision making
process based on three things. I would like to start describing such a process
right now. First let’s recap the three things that must be considered in our
decision making process</span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Perspective<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 1in; mso-list: l3 level2 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">o<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">One
would like to include all important perspectives in their consideration. A
perfect decision making process would consider the points of view from anyone
impacted or involved in the decision. This is seldom possible, so we try to get
as close as practical.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Impact<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 1in; mso-list: l3 level2 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">o<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">One
would like to be able to estimate and express the amount of impact and likely
consequence and benefit from a problem scenario (“current state”) and a
solution scenario (“proposed state” or “future state”) in order to assign the
correct priority and resources. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A
perfect decision making process would completely and correctly predict all
possible consequences from all possible outcomes of a decision. This is seldom
possible, so we try to get as close as is practical.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Basis for Decision<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 1in; mso-list: l3 level2 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">o<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">One
must understand the strength and coherence of the facts being used to portray
the problem and solution scenarios. A perfect decision making process would use
only information that had been vetted and confirmed to be accurate, and we
would have ALL of the information necessary to present a complete picture. This
is seldom possible, so we try to get as close as is practical.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">A good process evaluates all three of these elements
constantly and “spirals into” a decision, meaning that the first iteration
takes us from zero information on all three elements to our initial
understanding. If there are gaps in our initial understanding, we iterate
through again, and again.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">If we imagine the theoretical PERFECT process I eluded to
before, we would require just one iteration and it would be instantaneous. Your
current process is probably near perfect for simple decisions (e.g. only one
perspective matters and it is yours, the decision doesn’t carry very great consequences,
and you don’t have to deal with a great deal of data or strong conflicting
emotions). This is the kind of decision we often face when ordering lunch. For
decisions in which there is more complexity in these elements (i.e. risk), our
process needs to be more robust.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The first thing we concentrate on are the stakeholders,
their identity, their input (and its basis), and the impact of the direction
that their input implies. Note that we haven’t discussed who is going to make
the final decision, whether it is a group decision or an individual decision;
we are just gathering data.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Since the last 150 or so articles I have written have
been about how to have these kinds of conversations with people, I am going to
summarize that towards the end of the Decision Making series. For now, I am
talking about the middle step –basis for decisions.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">We have touched on the idea that there are emotional
decisions and logical decisions, and that we would prefer to eliminate emotions
from our decisions because they tend to distort reasoning. The fact is, almost
all (greater than 95%) of decisions have an emotional content and, as long as
it doesn’t distort reasoning there is no reason to exclude an option because it
is emotionally based (“Logically, I know I need to wear a tie to dinner.
Emotionally, I am going to pick the red tie because I like it more”). If, however,
you know that the person you are trying to impress tends to distrust people
with red ties, then you shouldn’t allow your emotion (liking it) distort your
reason (my purpose is to impress this person).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Since we are talking about business decisions, the
following emotional components are likely NOT useful and should be scrutinized
carefully if they are the primary reason you are making a business decision:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Indifference (Whatever – I don’t care – it’s not
MY company)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Addiction (We should hire more people because I WANT
a bigger department)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Faith (We are too big to fail; I just know that
customer would never drop us)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Emotion (We should acquire that little company that
makes cellphone applications because EVERYONE is buying cellphone app companies
these days and I don’t want to look out of touch)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Intuition (I have a feeling that that this is
going to be a great quarter…I can feel it in my bones)</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I am not saying that you can’t think or feel these
things, or that if you do something is going to go wrong. I am saying that if
your process recognizes these as adequate support for business decisions, then
your process is going to disappoint you more often than if you DON’T rely on
them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In fact, emotion adds certain aspects to decision making
that are valuable:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo4; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Improve Speed (fear increases speed of
decisions)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo4; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Provide Information (a potential course of
action that may bring regret or disappointment will promote greater discussion
and reflection about alternatives)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo4; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Assessing relevance (we consider the likelihood
of getting a result that will make us feel regret or disappointment and assess
the associated factors relevant and worthy of consideration) <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Here are some bases that tend to produce better results than
the above. These bases are viewed as “reasoned” or “logical” and are arranged
in order from lowest to highest likelihood of success:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Pressure (The boss says we should do it this
way. He wouldn’t be in his position if he didn’t know something about this)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Policy (The law directs a particular way in
which we deal with customer issues. Or, could be our policy or regulatory
requirements)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Experts (the reasoned conclusion of someone with
experience in the issue at hand)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Facts (use of decision analysis tools such as
criteria ranking, prioritization and weighting, or compliance tables. The Kepner
Tregoe decision making model is such a tool)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Probability (requires modeling to determine
certainty and uncertainty and to determine specific values of various outcomes)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">It is important to note that I am NOT saying that unless
you have a probability based process, your decisions will be wrong. Can experts
be wrong? Sure. Can intuition be right? Yes. I am saying that if your process recognizes
that decisions that are decided solely on emotion are more risky than decisions
that include logical elements, then you are likely to arrive at better results
that if it doesn’t.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Also, I am saying that your process must recognize that almost
all decisions contain some emotional content and it doesn’t hurt so long as
that content isn’t the entire basis for the entire decision AND it doesn’t
distort the reasoning that is present in the decision. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Next time we will talk a little more on this, and then
move on to Assessing Impact and Consequences.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-53127135886183729302012-09-23T18:03:00.001-07:002012-09-23T18:03:54.125-07:00Decisions, Decisions #2 - How do you make them now?
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Last time we learned that judging the soundness of our
decisions based on the PROCESS we use to make them is a better strategy than
basing that judgment on the RESULTS we achieve. This approach is rests on three
ideas:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">By developing a decision-making process that
rigorously considers a standard set of attributes and criteria, we can arrive
at better results IF the parameters and criteria we use are USUALLY important
factors.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">By revisiting our decision making process after
achieving our results, we can adjust our attributes and criteria based on
lessons learned and improve the probability of making a good decision next
time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">If we accept that the result of the decision is
the only way to judge its soundness, it inhibits our addressing the process of
making a decision.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Clearly, these attributes and criteria must be important.
Fortunately, people have been developing them for thousands of years,
continually refining them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To begin
with, I will put them in 3 different categories for general discussion and then
go through them in detail:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Category 1 –
Perspective<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">There is generally more than one (meaning more than just
YOUR perspective). This means you need to understand the various other
perspectives and account for them in the decision.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Category 2 – Impact</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Decisions that can result in serious and / or permanent results
deserve different scrutiny than those that make little difference. One of my
early mentors put it this way “The size of a problem can be measured by the
difficulty to recover from it.” I think that is pretty sound advice.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Category 3 –Basis for
Decision<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">We have all heard decisions characterized as “an emotional
decision” or “a fact-based decision”. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However,
few of us are trained such that we really know what these terms mean, or if
there are other bases for decisions (which of course there are), and how to
IMPROVE our basis. If you understand the basis for a decision and you understand
the differences between the various bases, you can improve your likelihood of
making a good decision. Would you rather make a decision based on intuition, or
on the results of an expert study? Which do you think would have the greater
likelihood of being correct?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The above are the things in which we will develop expertise over
the next few articles. For now, I want you to consider the following questions.
Feel free to write me (</span><a href="mailto:gregg@PFComm.com"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">gregg@PFComm.com</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">)
or post your thoughts here on the blog. I want you to think about how you
CURRENTLY do these things – define your current process……<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Perspective Questions
– <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How do I assure that I know which viewpoints are
important in a decision?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How do I make sure I understand what decision
should be made in the eyes of the people that hold those viewpoints?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How do I make sure that competing viewpoints are
resolved such that the people involved can be depended on to carry out the
decision and work towards achieving the desired result?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Impact Questions - <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How do I determine best, worst, and likely-case
results for my decisions?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How do I define critical vs. non-critical with
respect to outcomes? By the way the outcome affects me personally? My boss? My
customers? Other stakeholders?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How do I determine the consequences of the
outcomes?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">What if it the likely outcome is good for some
and bad for others?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Basis Questions – <o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo4; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Everyone says that using emotion as the basis
for decisions is a bad idea, but I seem to do it a lot (I bought my car cause
it looks hot, I picked my favorite basketball team because all my friends liked
them and were mean to people that didn’t like the same team, I chose to get a
dog “just because”). What would be a better way?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo4; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How do I make decisions when I know that my boss
disagrees? My spouse? My supplier?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo4; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How do I make decisions when I am short on time?
Short on data? I don’t really care about the outcome?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Think about how you use these three areas to make decisions
now, and we will talk about how I recommend you view them over the next few
articles. I look forward to hearing from you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-75005381936932272462012-09-01T15:23:00.000-07:002012-09-01T15:24:02.331-07:00Decision Making (#1 of a short series)<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I’ve spent the last few years writing this newsletter
about communication. I started doing that because I saw (as many of us see)
that we and our co-workers often make decisions that turn out badly, and those
disappointing results can usually be traced back to two elements: lack of necessary
information and a lack of objective understanding of the facts. Because these
are the biggest shortcomings in our decision making, I write and speak about
them the most (how do we get better information and develop a better
understanding). However, they aren’t the
ONLY problems with our decision making so today I will start a multi-article
series about how to improve our decision making with ideas NOT centered on
face-to-face communication.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
When we talk about “problems with decision quality” we
have to start with a definition of a good decision as our reference. If I ask
10 people “how can you tell if a business decision was a good one?”, I will
almost always hear “I don’t know”, which is a little troubling. After some
discussion I will generally hear “you can say that a business decision is good
if you got a good result”. That is, if we:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->wanted to enter a new market<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->decided that certain design changes would be
important to that market<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->made the design changes<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->began competing in that market<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
then our decisions were good, because we got a good
result.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Really? So you can’t tell if a decision is good until you
get a result? Decision experts tell us that that is a bad way to look at things
BECAUSE it gives us an excuse to relax the rigor of our decision making and
rush through the process of making them. I mean, if you can’t tell if the
decision is good until you get a result, then you don’t need to bother with
being rigorous; you need to get the result and then adjust. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
This lack of understanding regarding decision making
cripples countless business efforts and reduces our willingness to hold
accountable our decision making process. Of course we want our decisions to
yield good results, and by identifying and considering the important factors
involved and methods used in making decisions, we can improve our decisions markedly.
Let’s start with a new definition for a good decision: <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<i>A good business
decision is one that has been made in a way that assures:<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><i>that rigor
has been applied in the objective identification and consideration of the
expected impact of the outcome terms of:<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l1 level2 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><i>benefit and consequence<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l1 level2 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><i>permanence<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l1 level2 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><i>strength to bind the stakeholders to the outcome<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><i>that rigor
has been applied in the objective identification and analysis of the
information upon which the decision will be based<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><i>that the
rigor applied is proportional to the impact of the decision, and therefore
efficient in the use of the resources required to make it<o:p></o:p></i></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Over the next few weeks I will describe how such a
decision making method is implemented and how all of the elements of a good
decision are defined and determined. <o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-75401568752888070632012-08-12T23:03:00.000-07:002012-09-01T15:25:44.507-07:00Listening (part 5 of 5)<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Happy August, everyone! I had to excuse myself from the
Pathfinder Newsletter in order to take care of a few situations that required
my immediate and full time attention, but now am back and am closing on the
article about listening.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In this installment on the subject, I will cover the four
things that a skilled communicator needs to know in order to keep a difficult
conversation on track. They are:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1) Reduce the likelihood of our counterpart “shifting
away” from constructive to defensive conversation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2) Remedy things if they DO shift away.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">3) Reduce the likelihood of shifting away from our
counterpart ourselves.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">4) Re-center ourselves if we have inadvertently shifted
away from our counterpart.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Your counterpart can shift into a defensive mindset for a
lot of reasons, and there are some over which you have influence. By using the
skills described in </span><a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.net/The%20SCORE.pdf"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">THE SCORE</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">,
you will be able to exert the most influence in keeping them engaged in a
constructive conversation. More on this subject is</span><a href="http://pathfindercomm.blogspot.com/2009_03_01_archive.html"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;"> here</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In order to keep our counterpart from shifting into a
defensive mode, we use the knowledge that the feeling we experience are not so
much about what we see or hear, but what we tell ourselves about what we see or
hear. In some of my presentations, I tell a story that leads the listeners into
reacting based on a generalization (sharks are dangerous, for instance) and
then reveal some specifics that, had they known them, their reaction would have
been different and more rational.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Applying this well-known mechanism to an exchange with a
counterpart requires us to detect their defensiveness. Defensiveness is not
always expressed with anger or silence. Sometimes it is expressed with:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Sarcasm (“oh, that’s a GREAT idea” doesn’t
always mean that your counterpart thinks you are a genius!)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Control (“were you going to wear THAT tonight?”)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Withdrawal for the conversation (“whatever”,
silence)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">and other responses that aren’t clear communications –
they are ways people indicate what they would LIKE to say, but won’t say
because they don’t feel safe in saying it. Your primary job as a communicator
is to ensure that the other person feels safe in talking to you. The techniques
we cover in these newsletters are used by professionals like hostage
negotiators and crisis managers for that very reason – to make people feel
comfortable to talk even in highly charged situations. More information is
available </span><a href="http://pathfindercomm.blogspot.com/2011/10/understanding-expressions-of.html"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">here</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">When we find ourselves shifting into a defensive mode,
the first opportunity is when we feel as if the other party has made an attack
on our dignity or that we are not being heard. This usually happens when our
counterpart says something to us and we feel angry about it. Do you recognize
this as just a case of us telling ourselves a story about what the other person
meant and being angry over our story? If so, you are well on your way to
understanding how to correct the situation. A good method for this is to first
recognize that you are responsible for your stories and its best to get
clarification by asking your counterpart “ what do you mean by that” or “that’s
interesting – tell me more about that” or “can you say that a different way? I need
to understand just what you mean”. The purpose of this is to give yoru
counterpart the benefit of the doubt and ask for more words so that you can
come to understand what was meant.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Next time, we’re going to talk about the elements that go
into making good decisions.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-33983854437170454182012-04-22T22:49:00.000-07:002013-05-21T13:56:17.261-07:00Evidence<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Last time, we covered how to analyze the two main things we talk about at work (the way things are, and the way they should be) and I gave the methods for analyzing those questions that were written down by Aristotle 2500 years ago. I promised that this time we would talk about how to resolve the two “subtype” claims – those of quality and those of definition. Let’s do it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Claims of quality (also called claims of value) are, not surprisingly, claims that attempt to attribute a quality or a value to something. When we refer to things as being “good”, “best”, “healthy”, “kinky”, “large”, “difficult”, “worst”, “regrettable”, and so on, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>we are attributing a quality that has either a) a non-specific or relative meaning, or b) a meaning that is not easily definable on its own. When we refer to a car as “large”, for instance, what do we mean? How big is a large car? A test that I use for this kind of thing is a test of universality. That is, if I hear a claim and think that in the context it was made that anybody would get more or less the same picture in their mind, then I don’t make much of an analysis. On the other hand, if the claim is subjective and I think it is important for all the parties to have a clear understanding of exactly what is meant, I begin to ask clarifying questions.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>The first question is – “Which value should be used to evaluate the subject?”<o:p></o:p></strong></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A claim of value might state that “Quality is more important than on-time delivery”. The phrase “more important” is the “value” phrase here. It could be “more difficult” or “more profitable”. The point is that it is a phrase that has a clear meaning to me, but maybe not the SAME meaning to everyone. So we need to question what is meant by “more important”. Is it more important to the customer? To us? And HOW is it more important - in what way? To the customer’s desire to do business with us? To their ability to be profitable? To our need to meet certain contract requirements? We would hopefully be able to come up with a statement like “Quality is critical to our customer because they don’t have equipment to do rework. It would be better to be late and of good quality than on-time and need to be returned"</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This statement still has a problem; it says “it would be better…” which is another claim of value. We would like to have a standard to which we can measure that value. Therefore…</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>The second question is – “What standards are used to measure competing values?”</strong> Are we comparing this to customer needs? Industry norms? Military Standards? Our own business restrictions?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We may ask the customer for a guideline in our case statement. Let’s say that we tell them that we need a guideline to help us with these decisions if we are faced with a minor quality discrepancy, how much time would you be willing to risk? Let’s say they answer “Five days. It would be better for a shipment to be five or fewer days late and be of good quality than for us to have to find a local supplier to do the rework for us”. Now we have a customer supplied guideline. We could revise the statement to say “Quality is critical to our customer because they don’t have equipment to do rework. We may ship up to five days late if it means they receive quality goods”.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #29303b;">After the second question, we have transformed our claim of value into a claim of fact. We can therefore test it the same way – now that we have a standard, we ask if that standard was met. Therefore…<br />
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<strong>The third question is – “Have those standards been met?”</strong> Whatever standards we settled on at the second question must be measurable to the degree that we can settle the question. In our test case, we ask if we meet the five day window or not.</span> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">A claim of definition is one in which a word is associated to a definition. You think this is not complex, but it is at the center of argumentation. Developing definitions is CENTRAL to controlling the flow of a discussion and much time is spent in developing evidence to support them. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">To resolve a claim of definition, we follow the same strategy (convert it to a claim of fact) but with different questions. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>The first question we ask about a claim of definition is “Is it relevant if the term is defined?”</strong> If it doesn’t matter, then let it pass. If we need to know what it means, then this is a CRITICALLY important question. If we say “Capital Punishment is murder”, then we are saying that capital punishments is illegal (‘murder’ indicates a life taken unlawfully). If we say “Capital Punishment is killing, and killing is wrong”, then we are offering a moral rather than legal definition but we have to then support attacks on our position like “is it wrong for a soldier to kill? Or in self defense? Because if it is alright to kill in those cases, then not ALL killing is wrong. And isn’t capital punishment more like societal self-defense?” as I said, definition (and learning how to RE-define things in an argument) are critical when it comes to persuasion.<br />
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<strong>The second question we ask is “Is the definition fair?”</strong> That is, does it represent a biased point of view or not? Sometimes we might not like the definition, but if it is unbiased we need to consider it. For instance, in the case of “the product is ready to launch”, we may be listening to an engineer who means that “the design is complete” or a marketing manager describing that “the campaign is designed”. Both of these could be true, but the bias may lead us to believe that more has been done than truly has been. <br />
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<strong>The third question we ask is “How do we choose between competing definitions?”</strong> You say the product is ready to launch, and I say it’s not. How do we choose? We may suggest that we defer to an authoritative source like a Systems Engineering definition, or a Project Management definition, or just a dictionary if it applies. We may agree that we need some criteria that define what “product launch” means to us. We may defer to the definition that the company president uses. Maybe we’ll ask our customers what would constitute readiness, like “is the training ready yet?” Whatever method we use to make the choice, the choice needs to be made.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Again, we are converting the claim of definition to a claim of fact by asking these questions, and testing it by asking for evidence.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Oh, yeah – evidence. This week, all I want you to ponder about evidence is that there are only kinds of evidence. Ever.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 – Credibility: The person making the statement is credible, and because they are, we accept what they tell us.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 – Objective Evidence: This is something we can examine or review like something tangible or testimony.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3 – Social Consensus – This is something we all agree to. If we don’t agree to it, then we have to find one of the other two kinds of evidence to support it. Think about a statement like “Democracy is better than Tyranny”. We accept it at face value because we all agree with it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Since there are just three kinds of evidence, I will get through them all next time AND be able to describe how you rate the strength of a specific piece of evidence.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-36854586043169733162012-04-22T22:47:00.001-07:002012-04-22T22:47:59.711-07:00Listen (4 of 5)<span style="font-family: Calibri;">We’ve been talking about the fine art of listening for
the last few newsletters because of its critical importance to being a good
communicator, and we have progressed to talking about how to sense problems in
our communication. It is important to be keenly aware of when a problem in a
given communication starts, because they seldom get better with more talking. In
fact,they can often escalate very quickly.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">As you talk to your counterpart, you pretty much stay on
the subject. If, for instance, you are talking about a project at work, then
the discussion stays on a factual exchange about things related to the project –
due date, deliverables, requirements, budget, resources – things like that.
That is the kind of discussion we are hoping for, and many times we get it. But
sometimes we hear things that don’t fit exactly when, say, we are proposing an
idea ….like these:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our counterpart responds sarcastically, saying “Oh
SURE, why don’t I just do that TOO?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our counterpart starts avoiding giving direct
responses, instead favoring language that doesn’t help us make decisions. They are
RESPONDING, but not ANSWERING.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our counterpart starts “building suggestions”
into questions, like saying “Well, you aren’t going to let them get away with
that, are you?” In other words, telling you but NOT telling you.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Our counterpart makes a statement and we become annoyed
or uncomfortable and no longer feel safe to answer as we would like, so we stay
silent.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">As I teach in my classes, these changes are due to the
meaning that the LISTENER attaches to whatever the SPEAKER has said. The
LISTENER interprets the SPEAKER’S words and reacts. The LISTENER, then, has the
power to determine if they will continue to move towards the desired outcome,
or divert the conversation. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the first
three examples above, our counterpart is reacting to us in an unexpected way
and we can see that they have “<a href="http://pathfindercomm.blogspot.com/2011/10/understanding-expressions-of.html" target="_blank">shifted away</a>” the mutually beneficial,
fact-based discussion we had been enjoying and towards a more guarded or
cautious mode. In the fourth example, WE are the ones doing the shifting.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">It is important to be observant for these kinds of shifts
as we talk. In the next newsletter, we will talk about <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.net/The%20SCORE.pdf" target="_blank">THE SCORE</a>, which is a
method to reduce the likelihood of our counterpart shifting away from us. When
we see our counterpart shifting away from “responsible adult communication” it
is important to try to remedy the situation. We will learn to re-engage them by
asking some specific questions about their reaction. This is an activity called
“Name the Game” and we will talk about it in the next newsletter. It is easy,
non-confrontational, and has a good success rate for putting things back on
course.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">When we feel ourselves shifting, however, it is critical
that we address ourselves right away. Our counterpart is not skilled in trying
to prevent our shifting, and may unwittingly press our hot buttons. When they
hit one and feel ourselves moving out of the “safe zone” and into either fear
or anger, we need to be able to re-center ourselves quickly. So we have certain
stories we will tell ourselves about what the counterpart just said in order to
allow us to change the way we feel about it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Next time will talk about the following four things to
close on the topic of listening for now:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How to reduce the likelihood of our counterpart “shifting
away” by knowing THE SCORE.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How to remedy things if they DO shift away.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How to reduce the likelihood of shifting away
from our counterpart by using active inquiry.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">4)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">How to re-center ourselves after we have inadvertently
shifted away from our counterpart.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span><br />
<br />Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-89997361036333923612012-04-01T19:45:00.001-07:002012-04-01T19:50:38.350-07:00Listening (3 of 5)<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Think of a time when you were exchanging perspectives with someone, and it was important to you to be “right” (that is, for your counterpart to accept your perspective as the better perspective). If you are like most of us, you were only thinking about what YOU had to SAY. You may have told yourself you were “listening”, but you were likely only listening selectively, waiting for them to say something you could attack. As soon as they said it, you either interrupted them, or began formulating what you were going to say as soon as they stopped talking.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This is the way MOST of us get through these discussions because we are not trained in how to conduct them and, because MOST of us do it that way, we think it is alright. It isn’t, and if you have been reading my articles, attending my presentations, taking my classes, or talking to me you already KNOW it isn’t alright. It is actually one of the big reasons your conversations fail to get the results you want.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You aren’t listening, your counterpart KNOWS it, and it justifies them not listening to you – so they don’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The conversation is hardly a conversation at all – it is like two televisions facing each other…two talking heads and NO communication. Since YOU are the one that wants to get the good result, YOU need to be the one to break the “not listening” cycle.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">When the other side is talking, clear your mind regarding what your perspective is (you already KNOW what you think, and you will get time to share it). Listen to THEIR side. If they are saying something you don’t understand (never mind about agreeing or disagreeing… only if you don’t understand), ask them what they mean.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">“When you say ‘the best way for us to control our expenses is by simplifying our needs’, what do you mean by that?”<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">No preconceived notions, no accusation, no predicting their answer, no judgments, and most of all NO COMPARISON to your position – just a simple question to help YOU understand where they are coming from. Your listening to them does NOT mean you are agreeing with them, it JUST means you want to know what they have to say. You’d be surprised at the number of people that say they NEED to interrupt their counterpart because<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><strong> listening to them after they say something you disagree with ‘feels’ like you are indicating agreement by being silent</strong></i>. The truth is that you are permitted (and responsible) to LISTEN to the other person <strong>fully</strong> before deciding if you agree, disagree, partially agree….whatever. IF you choose to interrupt, however, you are telling the person that their continuing to speak is unnecessary and unwanted. And that’s how they will feel and act. And we're back to two televisions.</span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Watch your counterpart’s eyes, hands, and mouth as you speak. They may begin to speak and then stop themselves – obviously they want to interrupt. They may “goldfish” (open and close their mouth without making a sound) – again, they want to interrupt. Usually a hand that touches the mouth (or look like they are going to touch their mouth) is a body language cue that indicates they want to interrupt but are stopping themselves. Their looking away as you speak may mean the same thing – or they may be giving you a cue to stop talking.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The best way to prevent them from being distracted while you talk is to give them your full attention while THEY talk. Likely, if they are a new acquaintance or you have not worked through a disagreement with them before, they may not initially recognize the need to reciprocate your good listening skills. I recommend that you take the initiative and tell them that “I think this exchange will get the best result if we treat it like that – like an exchange in which I listen to YOUR side and you listen to MINE….fully. Then once we feel we understand both sides, we can talk about the differences, OK?”<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">They likely feel (like most people do) that continuing to listen after you say something with which they disagree is like agreeing. If they behave that way, tell them that you recognize that this a disagreement; that is you both have different opinions on the topic and that in order to resolve it you both need to understand what the differences are.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">There is some old advice that says “Don’t ever argue with a fanatic” and I have come to believe that in most cases that is a good policy. My test for a fanatic is to ask “is there ANYTHING I could say, or is there ANY information that you could hear from ANY source, that would tell you that there is a possibility that a perspective exists on this subject besides yours that might be valid?” If the person says no, then I usually choose to end the discussion. In many cases, I find that my time is best spent discussing the situation with people that CAN accept alternate perspectives on the subject AND that have influence on my counterpart. Usually, once they see a couple of people whom they consider respectable or powerful adopt a new perspective, they either “see the light” or figure “if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em”.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-41444893428900656092012-03-11T23:40:00.000-07:002012-03-11T23:40:33.968-07:00Listening (2 of 5)<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">As we start off our second article about the most important communication skill (listening), I want to share how the articles on this topic are going to tie together.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Last time, we gave an overview of the role of listening in persuasion and influence (what some might call the “end game” of communication) and then gave more detailed information on the BASICS of listening. <o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This time we will talk about the perspective a good listener takes in a conversation in order to send the right message and maximize natural collaboration in a discussion occurring in which the relationships are good and both parties want to collaborate. In other words, under the best circumstances.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The next article will give information to help you determine if the flow of conversation with the other party is open and progressing productively or not. Sometimes it’s hard to tell whether your counterpart is having difficulty in sharing their best and truest thoughts with you, or if you just THINK they are. We will talk about how to improve the circumstances and quality of collaboration “on the fly”<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">4)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The next article will be about what to do when the circumstances aren’t the best. For instance, when your listening skills tell you that the other party is not being forthcoming (getting answers is like pulling teeth) or that there are forces at work (ego, competition, or politics) that keep “natural” collaboration from being the first concern.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Because you are now concentrating on developing the listening skill we talked about last time, let’s start by talking about the “good listener’s perspective”. This is the perspective we take because we want to create a feeling of safety in the conversation. If people don’t feel safe, they won’t share thoughts that may contradict yours or those of people they feel may react badly because they don’t want to expose themselves to potential backlash – they want to avoid repercussions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So creating a safe conversation environment is your first objective. And remember – it is YOU they have to trust, and so YOU must alter YOUR perspective in order to authentically create the environment, It is NOT up to them.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">When I say a “safe” environment, I mean one that reduces defensiveness to a minimum. Remember that the first thing you are doing is listening. That means you are paying attention to them and NOT thinking about other things, not even about the way YOU feel about the topic. YOU are simply trying to understand their perspective. You are NOT trying to change it, or come to agree with it. you only want to understand how they think and feel and their reasoning. Here are some tips:<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Be empathetic (don’t condemn, argue, or patronize)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Be involved and engaged (don’t be intense)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Allow your body language to facilitate the free flow of information (don’t over react physically)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Disclose information about yourself, a little at a time (not too much, and not too soon – as long as you are the listener, you are not the star)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Respect the context of the speaker’s remarks<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Examine the speaker’s<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>body language for demeanor as well as listening to words<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Try not to think about what you're going to say next. Simply focu</span>s on what the other person says<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Paraphrasing what you heard<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span>demonstrates to<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"> the oth</span>er person that you're listening<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Asking questions demonstrates curiosity. Asking GOOD questions allows your counterpart to go deeper into what they care about and demonstrates a rare interest that deepens relationships.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Each individual I listen to has a slightly different quality and capability. I try to match their use of the language (vocabulary, grammar) as best I can. I would try not to show-off or confuse a counterpart with words they don’t know or a style of delivery that would likely make them feel inferior. It makes them feel defensive, and shuts down the communication. The reason I know this is because I have been shut down in this same way, and did it many times myself before I learned that the purpose of communication is to KEEP the good information flowing, not to stop it.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">There are some natural obstacles that cause difficulty in listening that I address in the table below. In future lessons, we will cover more items like this and I will show you not only what YOU should do ( as I do in the last to columns in the table) but I will show you how to lead your counterpart into exhibiting behavior that facilitates better communication as well.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P9McrjhTCW0/T12Z6dFr5sI/AAAAAAAAAFM/2beo-3juJRs/s1600/Natural+Obstacles.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="142" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P9McrjhTCW0/T12Z6dFr5sI/AAAAAAAAAFM/2beo-3juJRs/s400/Natural+Obstacles.png" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The next article will give information to help you determine if the flow of conversation with the other party is open and progressing productively or not.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-30689360186798406052012-02-12T09:56:00.000-08:002012-02-12T09:56:03.022-08:00Listening critically to what is being saidListening is key in sorting through your counterpart's perspective in a discussion. <span style="font-family: Calibri;">It is hard for me to overemphasize the importance of developing good listening skills. Being a good listener not only helps you as far developing an accurate understanding of the subject at hand, it helps you develop a profoundly persuasive position with the participants in your conversation(s). Over several articles, you will learn what it takes to go from being an average listener, to actually being able cause your counterpart to tell you things that they may not have ever even fully admitted to themselves <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u>because they are feeling heard for the first time.</u></i></b><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">When we talk about persuasion, people often imagine a single transaction or presentation in which people move from “no” to “yes”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rarely is it such a direct path. A more helpful (and realistic) model would show persuasion as a stepwise path in which we and our counterpart take a five step journey together as follows:<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">from resisting</b> each other’s<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>input <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">to listening</b> (both of us are now merely actively trying to understand the other’s<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>position)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">from listening to considering</b> (now we are weighing the differences between us and examining the merits of our respective positions)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">from considering to “willing to do”</b> (now we see the merits of each position and agree that we are “willing to do” the thing we are discussing)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">from “willing to do” to doing</b> (we move to action after expressing our willingness)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">from doing to continuing to do </b>(having changed our position, we are now glad we did and will continue on our own)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Each of these five steps has its own special purpose and elements, which we will learn over the next few articles. For now, just understand that the ability to listen well determines which person is directing the persuasion and the likely outcome. The person that best understands all of the positions will be in the best position to direct the group to the best outcome.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Listening requires the capacity to:<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">focus without bias on what the other person has to say<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">demonstrate that unbiased focus<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">appreciate the person’s right to have a position, even if you don’t agree with it <o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This requires some training, which I give in my classes and will give you some exercises over the next few articles to help.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>Becoming a better listener.<o:p></o:p></strong></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">There is surprisingly a lot to learn about being a great listener. These four points will do for now:<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">You need to listen. As we go through these lessons, you will learn how to get them to listen, but YOU must listen first. That is because YOU are the one learning to communicate. Not listening to your counterpart creates “sides” for an argument (us vs. them). Until people feel heard, they will fight to be heard. Some will fight in an aggressive way, others will withdraw and not speak, others will nod their heads and pretend to agree. All of those actions (and there are more) are signs that they don’t feel that you are listening and considering what they say. Until you do, they will find it “impossible” to listen and consider what YOU say. So you are going to go first. Besides, there are tremendous advantages to going first, which we will discuss later.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Recognize that listening is not the same thing as agreeing. Listening to another person’s perspective does not require you to take any particular action. The reason to listening is so important is that allows you to get a detailed understanding of their position on an issue WITHOUT agreeing – it is a data gathering exercise.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Maintain a comfortable physical distance (don’t crowd, don’t separate). We begin to understand what a “comfortable distance” is for speaking at an early age. Be conscious of maintaining that. Some of us crowd the other person when we feel the subject is very sensitive and some of us tend to stop talking when crowded. On the other hand, some of us tend to step back and away when the subject matter is difficult, and to some people that signals an end to the conversation. So rather than stop the conversation, go to a place where the conversation can be conducted at a comfortable 2 to 3 foot separation.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Don’t interrupt (not with your mouth, gestures, or body language). When listening, it is common to interrupt with words and we all know that we shouldn’t – it is the UNIVERSAL signal for not listening. But we also do things with our body language that is actually intended to signal to the other person that we WANT to interrupt (your mouth opening and closing, your eyes rolling, your head turning away or shaking in the “no” direction) and these are very distracting to the speaker.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
We'll cover a lot over the next few weeks and you will find that as you become a better listener, peple want to talk to you more. There are popular commercials for an eye doctor and a dentist in San Deigo right now that use the desire to be listened to as their main theme - "I went to DR. X and instead of them telling me what I needed, they LISTENED TO WHAT I WANTED and then discussed my options with me. I really felt like THEY CARED ABOUT ME." this is the natural response to good listeners, an we will learn how to elicit that response.<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-26037220327490121112012-01-23T23:16:00.000-08:002012-01-23T23:16:33.729-08:00Backing Up Your Statements<span style="font-family: Calibri;">We have spoken about conducting discussions about important topics and how we can use the SPIRAL model as a guide for better discussions. We have spoken specifically about:<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Categorizing the statements (claims) made into one of four categories.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Formulating good questions to investigate the basis for statements (questions are based on the statement’s category)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The three categories into which the responses to those questions will fall.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In other words, we have gotten through asking good questions and being given a response. We still have a very important part of the model to consider – analyzing the logic, the validity…the weight of the responses and the argument.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We will now start discussing how we analyze the logic of the statement(s) made in a discussion.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">There are five skills in which you will need some expertise, and each of them is easy to understand. Remember that you are likely already doing these things, but you may not know EXPLICITLY how you do them. Until you develop clarity regarding these elements, it is unlikely that you are consistent in your application and are not getting optimum results. Developing your skills in these areas will bring you an exceptional amount of confidence and credibility. We will discuss them one by one over the coming weeks.<o:p></o:p></span></div><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><br />
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">They are:<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Accurately determining the threshold of acceptance of evidence (Certainty vs. Likelihood)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;"><a href="" name="OLE_LINK2"></a><a href="" name="OLE_LINK1"><span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK2;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Listen critically to what is being said<o:p></o:p></span></span></a></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK1;"><span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK2;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Evaluating the construction of what is being said; which statements are made as claims and which are offered to support the claims (mapping)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK1;"><span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK2;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Evaluating the strength of the support being given (the power of the support lies in its likelihood of providing a correct conclusion)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK1;"><span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK2;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">5.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Evaluating the strength of the connection between the statement being supported and the support itself (the power of the connection lies in its likelihood of providing a correct conclusion).<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><br />
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Threshold of acceptance of evidence (Certainty vs. Likelihood)<o:p></o:p></span></b></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The first thing we must consider is the threshold we are trying to reach. Must we be CERTAIN that we are correct? Must it be HIGHLY LIKELY if not certain? More likely than not?<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;">If we demand certainty in a given situation, then the quality, volume, and rigor of analysis are paramount. There are few cases in business in which certainty can be achieved. This is possible through a process called “deduction” which is notoriously slow and requires a great deal of input – two things that are in short supply in most cases. Even a capital crime requires just enough evidence to squelch “reasonable doubt”, and those discussions can go on for many years.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Generally, the degree of confidence (likelihood) of correctness is directly proportional to what is at risk. This is why I tell my students that it is important to understand the IMPACT and CONSEQUENCES associated with a given situation, and for the various participants in the discussion to vet those before too much discussion takes place. This prevents us from discussing things that really don’t warrant discussion (no impact on our business, regardless of our outcome), or requiring an inappropriately high level of likelihood when the risks are low (and vice versa).<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In some cases, a consensus of opinion between a few observers is acceptable (if not much is riding on the outcome), but in the event that the company’s future is at stake, we would surely aim for a higher threshold.<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The generally accepted ranking of evidence (think of this as the nature of the response you are given to a question) is as follows (low to high):<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Lay Opinion (opinion of a single non-expert)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Consensus of Lay opinion (consensus opinion of several non-experts)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Reasoned Lay Opinion OR Expert opinion (opinion of a single non-expert that has been vetted with stringency OR the opinion of an expert)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Consensus of Expert opinion (consensus opinion of several experts)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">5.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A study of expert opinion (consensus opinion of several experts, vetted with stringency)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">6.</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A consensus of studies (consensus opinion of several studies)<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This doesn’t mean that an opinion is usually wrong. It means that when deciding the sufficiency of evidence, it is more likely to get better guidance the higher up you go on this list. Decisions on high risk items would demand a higher level of evidence due to the potential impact.<o:p></o:p></span></div><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p><br />
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<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">When is Evidence Sufficient (in order of sufficiency, high to low)?<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo4; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">When it leads to a conclusion <i><u>with certainty </u></i><o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo4; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">When it leads to a conclusion <i><u>that has the force of probability</u></i><o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo4; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">When it leads to a position that is <i><u>demonstrably</u></i> more reasonable<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 1in; mso-list: l3 level2 lfo4; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">o<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">That means<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u> demonstrating</u></i> stronger reasoning<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Otherwise, it must be considered insufficient<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
Next time, we will talk about the most important skill you will ever develop.<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-38867088804334178652011-12-18T23:28:00.000-08:002012-01-08T00:19:49.066-08:00Answering Questions about ClaimsIn recent newsletters, we have covered the four types of claims and the questions that one asks in order to clarify and gain a better understanding of what is meant by the claim. With this newsletter, we will cover what we should expect (and what we should accept) as a response to those questions. I will lay this out in a model called the SPIRAL model.<br />
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Imagine that there is something, perhaps a piece of sculpture, sitting on a pedestal. There are several people standing around it in a circle, all viewing it from a distance and from different angles. If asked what they see, it is unlikely that all of them will report seeing the same thing because they all have a different view of it. If they are allowed to move around it, approach it and study it from ALL of the available angles it becomes much more likely that they will begin to reach consensus about what they are looking at because they all have the same information. This is the advantage of SPIRALLING in on a topic in a discussion; we get to exchange viewpoints and “see other sides”.<br />
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The other reason I call it the SPIRAL model is to help remember the sequence of actions that allow us to evaluate a topic:<br />
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1. Someone makes a Statement (a claim). If there is no problem with the claim (that is if we understand and accept as spoken) we move to the next claim.<br />
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2. If there IS a Problem with the claim, then we raise an Issue (a question) based on the type of the claim.<br />
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3. When we raise an issue, the party that made the claim needs to provide a Response.<br />
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4. Once the response is provided, we Analyze the Logic of the response. That is, we determine if the response supports the claim.<br />
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<span style="color: red;"><strong>S</strong></span>tatement. <span style="color: red;"><strong>P</strong></span>roblem? <strong><span style="color: red;">I</span></strong>ssue! <span style="color: red;"><strong>R</strong></span>esponse. <span style="color: red;"><strong>A</strong></span>nalyze <span style="color: red;"><strong>L</strong></span>ogic…….<span style="color: red;">SPIRAL</span><br />
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Graphically stated…<br />
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<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-z584CvuZDYs/Tu7mYNkwO7I/AAAAAAAAAE4/X2MjVcbhK3g/s1600/Asking+for+Evidence.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" oda="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-z584CvuZDYs/Tu7mYNkwO7I/AAAAAAAAAE4/X2MjVcbhK3g/s400/Asking+for+Evidence.png" width="400" /></a></div><br />
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We have spent some time covering the types of claims AND the stock issues related to each type of claim. So let’s talk about those responses.<br />
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Formally, the response is called “evidence” and that is one way to look at it, but the word implies a certain kind of courtroom methodology that we really don’t mean here. Think of the response as just that – a response to a question about a claim.<br />
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For instance, your friend comes in and says “Make sure your windows are rolled up. It’s going to rain.” The Statement here is that it going to rain. This is the first you’ve heard of it, and maybe you saw no sign of rain, so in your mind there is a Problem with the claim and you want to take Issue (question) as to whether the claim is true, so you ask “What makes you say it’s going to rain?” Your friend’s response could be many things:<br />
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1. My joints always ache just before a rain, and they are aching right now.<br />
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2. Everybody knows it rains this time of year.<br />
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3. It was raining 10 miles up the road when I came in to work, and the clouds were moving this way.<br />
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4. It is Tuesday. It has rained the last 4 Tuesdays in a row.<br />
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5. The weather report said so.<br />
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These are all responses meant to answer your question, but how would we sort through them or compare them? It seems like you can answer an Issue with anything!<br />
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Just like there are only four types of claims that we have to deal with, there are only three categories of evidence, each with their own evaluation schemes that will be important to us when we begin the “Analyze Logic” step of SPIRAL model. The categories are:<br />
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1- Objective Evidence: Something we can examine or test. Example - an object (a wet car or a cloudy sky for response 3 above) or testimony (a weather report for response 5 above). Objective evidence is something that we can look up or review or somehow further examine independently. It doesn’t mean that, for instance, that the item being examined is objective (that is, unbiased). It means that the item being examined is an object, as opposed to the other two forms of evidence (below). Testing objective evidence is done by examining it using the same two questions we would use for testing a claim of fact. That is, we would ask “How would we know if the weather report was credible?” and “Does it meet that test for credibility?” for response 5 above.<br />
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2- Social Consensus: These are those things that we decide to agree on generally. For instance, if someone were to claim that “democracy is better than tyranny”, we might ask what they mean by better, but we wouldn’t generally disagree in principle. There are many times when we believe things are generally accepted only to find out they are not. For instance, you may believe that it is common knowledge that people don’t wear white after Labor Day. I would contest that saying that it may be true in some circles, I don’t think it is GENERALLY true at all. When reasons are offered because “everybody knows…” (like response 2 above), that is using Social Consensus as evidence. Testing Social Consensus is done by asking explicitly <br />
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3- Credibility: The speaker’s credibility can play a role as evidence as well. Are they knowledgeable in the subject being discussed (training, education, background)? Are they trustworthy (biased or untruthful)? Do they have access to the information they are talking about (the activities going on in private or ‘secret meetings’)?<br />
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So there are the three categories of response that are given to back up a claim. When you ask a question, you should try to view the answer in light of one of these categories and, if necessary, ask further questions to clarify the claim.<br />
In the last few newsletters, we have discussed all of the elements in the SPIRAL Model EXCEPT the last one – that is, how do we Analyze the Logic to decide if the statement is cogent and logical? We will cover that next time.<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-39759758114389546312011-11-26T23:06:00.000-08:002011-11-29T01:08:10.090-08:00Claims of Quality and Claims of Definition<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Last time, we covered how to analyze the two main things we talk about at work (the way things are, and the way they should be) and I gave the methods for analyzing those questions that were written down by Aristotle 2500 years ago. I promised that this time we would talk about how to resolve the two “subtype” claims – those of quality and those of definition. Let’s do it.</span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Claims of quality (also called claims of value) are, not surprisingly, claims that attempt to attribute a quality or a value to something. When we refer to things as being “good”, “best”, “healthy”, “kinky”,“large”, “difficult”, “worst”, “regrettable”, and so on, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>we are attributing a quality that has either a) a non-specific or relative meaning, or b) a meaning that is not easily definable on its own. When we refer to a car as “large”, for instance, what do we mean? How big is a large car? A test that I use for this kind of thing is a test of universality. That is, if I hear a claim and think that in the context it was made that anybody would get more or less the same picture in their mind, then I don’t make much of an analysis. On the other hand, if the claim is subjective and I think it is important for all the parties to have a clear understanding of exactly what is meant, I begin to ask clarifying questions.</span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>The first question is – “Which value should be used to evaluate the subject?”</strong></span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A claim of value might state that “Quality is more important than on-time delivery”. The phrase “more important” is the “value” phrase here. It could be “more difficult” or “more profitable”. The point is that it is a phrase that has a clear meaning to me, but maybe not the SAME meaning to everyone. So we need to question what is meant by “more important”. Is it more important to the customer? To us? And HOW is it more important - in what way? To the customer’s desire to do business with us? To their ability to be profitable? To our need to meet certain contract requirements? We would hopefully be able to come up with a statement like “Quality is critical to our customer because they don’t have equipment to do rework. It would be better to be late and of good quality than on-time and need to be returned"</span></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">This statement still has a problem; it says “it would be better…” which is another claim of value. We would like to have a standard to which we can measure that value. Therefore…</span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>The second question is – “What standards are used to measure competing values?”</strong> Are we comparing this to customer needs? Industry norms? Military Standards? Our own business restrictions?</span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We may ask the customer for a guideline in our case statement. Let’s say that we tell them that we need a guideline to help us with these decisions if we are faced with a minor quality discrepancy, how much time would you be willing to risk? Let’s say they answer “Five days. It would be better for a shipment to be five or fewer days late and be of good quality than for us to have to find a local supplier to do the rework for us”. Now we have a customer supplied guideline. We could revise the statement to say “Quality is critical to our customer because they don’t have equipment to do rework. We may ship up to five days late if it means they receive quality goods”.</span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #29303b;">After the second question, we have transformed our claim of value into a claim of fact. We can therefore test it the same way – now that we have a standard, we ask if that standard was met. Therefore…<br />
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<strong>The third question is – “Have those standards been met?”</strong> Whatever standards we settled on at the second question must be measurable to the degree that we can settle the question. In our test case, we ask if we meet the five day window or not.</span> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">A claim of definition is one in which a word is associated to a definition. You think this is not complex, but it is at the center of argumentation. Developing definitions is CENTRAL to controlling the flow of a discussion and much time is spent in developing evidence to support them. </span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">To resolve a claim of definition, we follow the same strategy (convert it to a claim of fact) but with different questions. </span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>The first question we ask about a claim of definition is “Is it relevant if the term is defined?”</strong> If it doesn’t matter, then let it pass. If we need to know what it means, then this is a CRITICALLY important question. If we say “Capital Punishment is murder”,then we are saying that capital punishments is illegal (‘murder’ indicates a life taken unlawfully). If we say “Capital Punishment is killing, and killing is wrong”, then we are offering a moral rather than legal definition but we have to then support attacks on our position like “is it wrong for a soldier to kill? Or in self defense? Because if it is alright to kill in those cases, then not ALL killing is wrong. And isn’t capital punishment more like societal self-defense?”as I said, definition (and learning how to RE-define things in an argument) are critical when it comes to persuasion.<br />
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<strong>The second question we ask is “Is the definition fair?”</strong> That is, does it represent a biased point of view or not? Sometimes we might not like the definition, but if it is unbiased we need to consider it. For instance, in the case of “the product is ready to launch”, we may be listening to an engineer who means that “the design is complete” or a marketing manager describing that“the campaign is designed”. Both of these could be true, but the bias may lead us to believe that more has been done than truly has been. <br />
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<strong>The third question we ask is “How do we choose between competing definitions?”</strong>You say the product is ready to launch, and I say it’s not. How do we choose? We may suggest that we defer to an authoritative source like a Systems Engineering definition, or a Project Management definition, or just a dictionary if it applies. We may agree that we need some criteria that define what“product launch” means to us. We may defer to the definition that the company president uses. Maybe we’ll ask our customers what would constitute readiness, like“is the training ready yet?” Whatever method we use to make the choice, the choice needs to be made.</span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Again, we are converting the claim of definition to a claim of fact by asking these questions, and testing it by asking for evidence.</span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: #29303b;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Oh, yeah – evidence. This week, all I want you to ponder about evidence is that there are only <strong>three</strong> kinds of evidence. Ever.</span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 – Credibility: The person making the statement is credible, and because they are, we accept what they tell us.</span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 – Objective Evidence: This is something we can examine or review, like something tangible or testimony.</span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3 – Social Consensus – This is something we all agree to. If we don’t agree to it, then we have to find one of the other two kinds of evidence to support it. Think about a statement like “Democracy is better than Tyranny”. We accept it at face value because we all agree with it.</span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: #29303b;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="color: #29303b;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Since there are just three kinds of evidence, I will get through them all next time AND be able to describe how you rate the strength of a specific piece of evidence.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-37991902491780831562011-11-13T23:34:00.000-08:002011-11-13T23:34:32.301-08:00The Way Things Are and What We Should DoWrite me or leave a comment to congratulate me on my 150th article!<br />
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In the last newsletter, I invited you to take some time in your workplace and try to categorize what you heard into the two main types or two subtypes of claims. They were:<br />
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<ul><li>Claims of Fact (the way things are)</li>
<li>Claims of Definition (the way we define things)</li>
<li>Claims of Value (seeing things and good vs. bad (absolute values) or better vs. worse (relative value))</li>
<li>Claims of Policy (what we should do)</li>
</ul><br />
<div> Judging by the mail I got, some of you were able to pick them out readily, and some had trouble hearing them. That’s because, in real life, people generally don’t organize their sentences in the form of claims (unless they are trained communicators). The words flow like thoughts and listeners, if trained or very interested, will organize the words into claims in order to process them. Said another way:</div><br />
<div> </div><ul><li>A trained communicator will express claims in the simplest form to promote understanding in the listener.</li>
<li>A trained listener learns to use a few techniques to help clarify and organize an untrained speaker’s words so that a clear meaning is shared between them.</li>
</ul><br />
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The readers of this newsletter are getting the training and, judging by the email, the next thing I need to do is describe how to categorize claims.<br />
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<div> Writers master the art of creating dialog that is simple to follow and still mimics natural speech. This is so regular people can remain interested in what characters have to say, understand their meaning, and feel what the emotions that the writer intends to convey. This task takes talent, training, and practice to perfect, and I don’t intend to turn anyone into a screenwriter (not that I could). However, I CAN show you how to listen and use the inquiry model to dissect normal unscripted speech into the correct claims. Let’s start with some talk I heard this week at work:</div><br />
<div> <br />
</div><span style="color: red;"><em>“We thought the changes in the customer’s budget would cause a slowdown in new contracts, but they seem to be coming in faster. I think, though, we are going to keep hiring at the same rate we planned. I think we should hire at the same rate that the contracts come in.”</em></span><br />
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<div> These three sentences represent a typical natural language thought being expressed – maybe between two people or even in a small group. You know from experience that this just comes gushing out of people all day and that when you hear it, you process it in silence – making a number of assumptions about what the person means and what the impact is. Our assumptions usually are incorrect. Often they are not SO wrong that we have a negative effect on the company operations, but sometimes they are.</div><br />
<div> </div><br />
<div> First we learn to listen. The key to being a good listener is to focus on the speaker and their words. Don’t try to analyze and “mentally argue” while they are speaking. Just try to understand their perspective, and put them in the form of claims.</div><br />
<div> </div><span style="color: red;">1 - New contracts are coming in faster than we expected </span><br />
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<ul><li>Claim of quality (due to the word ‘faster’ - need clarification on what ’faster’ means)</li>
<li>Need to clarify what ‘we’ means</li>
<li>Need to question if why the situation is different than we expected is relevant</li>
</ul><span style="color: red;">2 – We are going to keep hiring at the planned rate </span><br />
<ul><li>Claim of fact</li>
<li>Need to clarify what ‘we’ means (same ‘we’ as above?)</li>
</ul><span style="color: red;">3 – Our hire rate should match the rate of incoming contracts</span><br />
<ul><li>Claim of policy (note the word ‘should’ – denotes a claim of policy)</li>
</ul><br />
<strong><u>Now the analysis:</u></strong><br />
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<div> </div><span style="color: red;">#1 -</span> With a claim of quality or definition, we try to convert it to a claim of fact by working through the value or word meanings until we agree on their specific meanings. In our example, we will ask questions about the words ‘we’ and ‘faster’ until we arrive at a statement like this:<br />
<ul><li>New contracts are coming in at the rate of $300K per week</li>
<li>Our department manpower budget was set for the work associated with a $200K per week rate</li>
</ul>By using this method (more on that next time), we create two claims of fact to examine.<br />
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<div> </div>To examine a claim of fact, we ask just two questions (formally known as "raising issues"):<br />
<ul><li>How would we test the claim to know if it is true? (what evidence will we accept?)</li>
<li>Does it pass that test? (is there adeuquate evidence?)</li>
</ul>Going back to our example, how would we test the claim that new contracts are coming in at the$ 300K rate? Well, we could ask accounting if we are averaging that rate over some period (like 90 days), or we could ask them what a fair test is to determine that. We would be wise to ask them to use the same test as we used to determine that the old rate was $200K. Let’s say that the calculation accounting always uses is to take total sales for the quarter and divide by 13 (weeks in a quarter) to get the weekly rate. That is the test we will use.<br />
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Next, we have to determine if the claim passes that test. Let’s say that when accounting makes the calculation, we find that the average is $291K for that last two quarters. We decide to agree that it passes the test and now we know that the incoming contract dollar rate is $291K. If it wasn’t true – if the actual number was still at the planned rate – then we might stop here and wonder” how do these rumors get started, anyways?” Let’s say you didn’t like my suggested test, and I don’t like yours. We might agree to seek someone out that knows more about it than we do about how to determine these things<br />
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The second claim of fact is tested using the same two questions, So How would we test to determine is the manpower budget was set to handle $200K per week? Easy – that one we could probably look up. When we look it up, we find that is correct. We were set to handle $200K per week. So the WAY THINGS ARE is that there is a difference between the budgeted and actual amount. At this point, that is all we know.<br />
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<div> </div><br />
<div> </div><span style="color: red;">#2 –</span> “We are going to hire at the planned rate” is another claim of fact, so we test it the same way. First, clarify to see that ‘we’ in this claim is the same ‘we’ that is planned to hire for $200k per week and let’s say that it is our department. How would we test it to know if we are going to hire at that rate? I would want to ask the person that knows the rate at which our department (the ‘we’) is hiring and plans to hire. Let’s say that we decide that it is our boss. We ask the boss and they say we are adding people at the rate we planned – the $200K rate. So the WAY THINGS ARE is that there is a difference between the budgeted and actual amount of new contracts coming in and we are hiring at the lower rate.<br />
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<div> </div><span style="color: red;">#3 –</span> The last claim is a claim of policy and that is the trickiest kind, although we have done some of the legwork already. A claim of policy has five questions associated with it. They are:<br />
<ul><li>What is the problem exactly?</li>
<li>How big an impact does the problem have?</li>
<li>What is it about our standard operation that keeps the problem from being solved already?</li>
<li>What is the proposed solution and does it solve the problem?</li>
<li>Does the solution cause problems?</li>
</ul>Let’s step through these:<br />
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<div> </div><u>What is the problem exactly?</u><br />
What we know is that contract dollars are coming in 30% faster than we planned. The unplanned work could outstrip our ability to perform it.<br />
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<div> </div><u>How big an impact does the problem have?</u><br />
We don’t know, but at the worst it could cause us to deliver late, or to be rushed and inject defects into the system. All of the problems that come with dinge overwhelmed. At best, we can handle the work within the current hiring plan (if the work is different than usual and requires less resources OR if we find ways to do the work more efficiently than before OR if the new employees we hire come up to speed quickly OR…).<br />
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<div> </div><u>What is it about our standard operation that keeps the problem from being solved already?</u><br />
There is no automated linkage that would make us review the hiring plan as part of reviewing incoming contract dollars.<br />
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<div> </div><u>What is the proposed solution and does it solve the problem?</u><br />
We propose increasing the rate of hire to match the rate of incoming contract dollars UNLESS we analyze the cause deviation from planned hiring and find that somehow it is unwarranted.<br />
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<div> </div><u>Does the solution cause problems?</u><br />
The solution would cause problems if we hired more people than we need to do the incoming work.<br />
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<div> </div><strong>RECAP –</strong> this week we learned that:<br />
<ul><li>Listening is the first key and remaining objective is the second key. Listen to ensure that the issue is important and work through the issue objectively to ensure that it is clearly understood.</li>
<li>Natural speech doesn’t present claims on a silver platter, like a TV script might. You have to listen and then re-phrase definitions, values, and qualities to develop a common understanding of them. </li>
<li>The resolution of these issues can happen very quickly if you know how to work this model. It is a model called the SPIRAL model, for reasons that will become obvious in a couple more newsletters.</li>
<li>Claims of Fact have just two questions that need to be answered in order to resolve them.</li>
<li>Claims of Policy have five questions to resolve them. </li>
</ul><strong>NEXT TIME -</strong> In the course of resolving the issues above, we asked people for information and they gave it to us. When you ask for information to resolve a claim, the information is formally called “evidence”. Next time, we will learn:<br />
<ul><li>What questions to ask to resolve claims of quality and claims of definition?</li>
<li>What are the three kinds of evidence that we use and what are the rules for evaluating its strength?</li>
</ul><br />
<div> </div><br />
<div> </div><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span><br />
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<div> </div>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-616308186042148391.post-5819446903351316342011-10-30T22:16:00.000-07:002011-10-30T22:16:00.909-07:00Two Types of Business Conversations (and two subtypes)I wanted to make a stronger connection for you all in reference to a statement I frequently make when talking about business communication, Specifically, the following:<br />
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<em>“<span style="color: red;">Many of us have a ‘rule of thumb’ that supports a belief that there is a nearly infinite variety of things can be said in business communications, but in reality there are only TWO primary topics and TWO secondary topics (secondary topics being those that expound on the primary topics. This is a total of just FOUR categories</span>”</em><br />
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I often feel badly when I say this, because the looks I get are either looks of disbelief, confusion, disagreement, or enlightenment. That means I am not doing a very good job with that and so I will try to fix that here, and hope for more enlightenment.<br />
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First, let’s discuss why it matters. Being able to categorize the types of conversations allows us to observe and establish theories about our communications. Theory is the part of science that supports analysis and prediction.<br />
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We can predict the path of a bullet if we know a few things about the context of the act of shooting. We can even determine things we don’t know about the act, if we analyze the path of the bullet. So first, there is the understanding that there is a science of communication that has robust theory that allows for prediction. <br />
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<span style="color: red;">Imagine how useful it would be to recognize ANYTHING said in a business meeting as being one of four types of statements and YOUR method for analyzing it is the simplist and surest method for getting a good result, and using it promotes buy-in.</span> <br />
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My statement is that, in business, we are usually either talking about the way things ARE, or the way they SHOULD be – those are the two primary topics. We often hear assignments of definitions assigned to things (“Capital punishment is murder”) or values (“Greed is good”) when describing the way things are. These definitions and values are the secondary topics we talk about.<br />
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<div> </div>Next, we go to the classics – Aristotle. Aristotle wrote there are four types of claims (fact, definition, value, and policy). Claims are statements made in critical discussions (discussions in which we are being critical, otherwise known as “argument”). Information about each type is as follows:<br />
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<ul><li>Claims of Fact attempt to describe ‘the way things are’. We recognize “Elephants are gray” as a claim of fact. It is a little more difficult to see the statement “Elephants are red” as a claim of fact, but it is. It is not necessary for a statement to be true to be considered a “claim of fact” – just that it asserts a fact. Part of the robust theory I mentioned earlier gives us tools to examine each type of claim and determine its degree of factuality.</li>
<li>Claims of Definition attempt to attribute a particular meaning to something. “Late Shipments are epidemic” may be one that a customer might offer when finding out that another order is going to be late. This definition of a late shipment carries with it different meanings to different people. We will use some of our rules to transform this into a claim of fact (maybe several claims of fact in complex issues).</li>
<li>Claims of Value (also Quality) attempt to assign a value to something. “Our competitors are irresponsible” assigns a quality to our competitors. “Being a vegetarian is better than being a meat eater” assigns a value. Both ask us to make a judgment that needs clearer understanding of the use of those qualities and values. Aristotle will show us the necessary tests.</li>
<li>Claims of Policy attempt to determine a course of action – what we ought to do, or need to do, or should do. Most of my business discussions are based on this type of claim. It has the most rules of all of the claims (six rules) which are easy to memorize as are they all.</li>
</ul><span style="color: red;">For the next two weeks, just do this for me – Listen. Listen to the things people talk about around you and develop the skill of putting the ideas into one of the four categories. You will see that people sometimes use a lot of words to describe a simple thought. We will go over the importance of collaboratively condensing these “long concepts” into shorter statements to analyze and cover some methods for doing so.</span><br />
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<div> I promise that the methods I show you are well-understood and have been practiced for millennia. The reason you weren’t taught them in grade school is – well, they are very powerful and probably boring to someone that has not had exposure to critical conversations that were important to them and their livelihood. So, now that you are a person that has decided to tackle this aspect of leadership, it is your time. <span style="color: red;">Start by LISTENING. Always.</span></div><div><span style="color: red;"></span> </div><div>We will begin learning the rules for testing these for types of claims next time.</div><br />
<div> </div><br />
<div> </div><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em>Insist on great business results! Go to <a href="http://www.pathfindercommunication.com/">Pathfinder Communication</a></em></span><br />
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<div> </div>Gregg Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325477713192292916noreply@blogger.com0