Why is communicating so dang hard?

Why is communicating so dang hard?

‘Tis the season of happy and merry and peace on earth. Yet it also seems to be the season of frustration and strained relationships and short fuses, at least sometimes. Why is that? We could easily write about overwhelm and overcommitment and over-doing, which are...
Are you truly listening?

Are you truly listening?

“Genuine listening means suspending memory, desire and judgment – and, for a moment at least, existing for the other person.” ~Michael P. Nichols The other day I was ‘listening’ to my colleague. We were in the midst of a heated discussion, and it was her...
How to make criticism charming

How to make criticism charming

“Anyone can be accurate and even profound, but it is hard work to make a criticism charming.” ~H.L. Mencken If the primary goal of feedback is to help, and motivate, someone to change their behavior, it seems to me that the secondary goal of feedback is to...