[This post is part of a series on Communication Skills Exercises for Business and Life. If you don’t see a Table of Contents to the left, click here to view the series, where you’ll get more value than reading just this post.] UPDATE: See my February 2016 webinar video on the Meaningful Connection exercise. It goes into more depth. Have you noticed how some people, when they meet someone, draw[…] Keep reading →

[This post is part of a series on Communication Skills Exercises for Business and Life. If you don’t see a Table of Contents to the left, click here to view the series, where you’ll get more value than reading just this post.] Storytelling is a fundamental element of human communication. Tell someone what you did the other day and they may end up bored. Tell them a story well and[…] Keep reading →

[This post is part of a series on Communication Skills Exercises for Business and Life. If you don’t see a Table of Contents to the left, click here to view the series, where you’ll get more value than reading just this post.] Do you ever start a conversation you want to talk to, then run out of things to say? This exercise will help. I adapted it from my friend[…] Keep reading →

In the midst of my series on Communication Skills Exercises, yesterday I worked with the brilliant, talented, and accomplished Nina Paley — free culture advocate, creator of Sita Sings the Blues, cartoonist of the insightful, funny, and subversive Mimi and Eunice, and friendly neighbor. We animated the Freedombox logos John Emerson and I worked on. She also does things like post blog entries titled “I am awesome,” suggesting an obvious[…] Keep reading →

[This post is part of a series on Communication Skills Exercises for Business and Life. If you don’t see a Table of Contents to the left, click here to view the series, where you’ll get more value than reading just this post.] I love starting seminars with this exercise. It’s simple and interactive. It gets people’s blood flowing and meeting their neighbors. It works best in a group, but you[…] Keep reading →

[This post is part of a series on Communication Skills Exercises for Business and Life. If you don’t see a Table of Contents to the left, click here to view the series, where you’ll get more value than reading just this post.] I wasn’t born with great communication skills. I don’t think I had great problems with communication, but I was behind the curve in many areas. As I learned[…] Keep reading →

Yesterday’s post described how interacting with a former Austrian soldier, now friend’s grandfather led me to examine my values. Such interactions lead you to expand your understanding of others and of humanity as well. Let’s understand the situation. Comparing people to Nazis has become an internet joke (perhaps insightful) called Godwin’s Law. This situation isn’t that. This man was a Nazi foot soldier, proud of some aspects of it. I’m[…] Keep reading →

You may think you know your values. Until you test them, you probably don’t. Understanding their boundaries helps you understand them better. Testing them in controlled situations prepares you for surprises others aren’t prepared for. Preparation like that makes for effective leadership of yourself and others. If you never plan to reach any boundaries, you may not expect to benefit from examining them. But then if you never examine them,[…] Keep reading →

When you run in Central Park a lot, you see a lot of fun runs, races for cures, and light sporting events — typically five kilometer runs raising money for charity. Typically also many of the people involved don’t run; they walk most of the distance. They still wear workout clothes — often higher quality gear than I wear. I don’t think walking exercises you as much as running, but[…] Keep reading →