Typical conference.

Typical speaker.

An athlete talking about her experience.

Oh well…here we go again : a nice personal story about resilience, courage, perseverance and oh yes, a clear goal, determination, etc., etc..

We all know this. Most of us will shed a tear or two.

Because this story moves us.

Because we realize that we cannot do this…for some reasons or other.

Most of these conferences are inspiring and motivating but, you know the saying : Motivation is like a shower….a daily dose is required for any sustained effect !”

Two days later and …POUF!!! We are back to our regular job and normal life.

But this conference was a bit unusual.

First of all, the feat was quite extraordinary : rowing alone across the Atlantic. And she was afraid of water !

Second, the presentation did not use PowerPoint. So…no death by bullets !! Instead, Prezi, and in a really nice way !!

Then she interacted with the crowd. Oh,oh…getting better.

And of course, she had those messages… deeply embedded in the slide show and stories.

And one of those attribute of success strucked me.

Rowing by yourself on the Atlantic forces, you need to learn a bit about navigation rules, one of them was a communication reflex. Whenever two boats cross each other, they always start the “conversation” by asking the other: “What are the conditions of your situation ?”.

This is really strange when you talk to a guy in a boat right in front of you. But the speaker learned rapidly that although her boat was moving at …oh…pretty stationary for the last hour or so…the other boat might have been moving at 40 knots. THAT means that their conditions were changing rapidly whereas hers were not.

But, and this is a great kick in the “butt”, UNLESS you tell the other person in front of you, moving fast or not, THEY DO NOT KNOW the situation of your conditions !!!

AH!!

How odd!

This reminds me of a recent, let say “discussion” with my spouse.

Or a not so recent argument with a client.

Or a distant misunderstanding with my aging parents over the phone.

Or …

SO

MANY

SITUATIONS !!!!

 

How frequently do we assume that the world knows about our pleas ?

  • At home or at work.
  • Among friends or colleagues !
  • During a regulatory inspection or at the store !
  • On the road or on the sidewalk !
  • All the time.
  • Everywhere !

 

We now live in an era of instant communications and constant connection with the rest of the world. Or so it seems.

Are we communicating better or are we somehow only submerged in an ocean of useless blabber ?

I suggest we take example form the navy and simply ask the person in front of us : What are the conditions of your situation ?

Or simply :

  • Tell me more…
  • And then ?
  • What is troubling you ?
  • What are your thinking right now ?

The one problem I hear from ALL my clients about their current situation at work (probably at home too !) is ….communication !

We do not have to row across the Atlantic to learn this.

Let’s simply row all together in the same direction, the one that we share and tell ourselves about.

Frequently.

Humanly.

 

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