152. Fix Your Communication: Why It’s About Connection Over Perfection
Jul 23, 2024
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Guest Matt Abrahams discusses communication breakdowns, focusing on connection over perfection. Tips include managing anxiety, building confidence, and serving the audience. The podcast explores strategies for impromptu speaking and overcoming anxiety in high-pressure situations.
Effective communication is about connection, not perfection, focusing on audience needs enhances clarity.
Maintaining focus, avoiding unnecessary elaboration, and embracing structure contribute to concise and impactful communication.
Deep dives
Importance of Spontaneous Communication Skills
Being able to communicate confidently and effectively on the spot is a valuable skill in various situations, including meetings, Q&A sessions, and networking events. Preparation and mindset play crucial roles in addressing the anxiety that often accompanies spontaneous communication. Developing a structured approach, listening actively, and focusing on audience needs can help individuals navigate high-stakes communication scenarios.
Benefits of Structured Communication
Creating a framework for communication, such as problem-solution-benefit formats, enhances clarity and coherence in delivering messages. Embracing structure not only aids in preventing blanking out under pressure but also ensures key ideas are effectively communicated. Maintaining focus and avoiding unnecessary elaboration contribute to concise and impactful communication.
Balancing Preparation and Spontaneity
While preparation is essential for effective communication, managing anxiety and building confidence are equally crucial. View anxiety as an energy source for optimal performance rather than a hindrance. Developing an anxiety management plan, including breathing techniques and positive affirmations, can help individuals cope with stress before engaging in communication tasks.
Communication as a Service to the Audience
Shifting the focus from self-doubt to audience-centered communication fosters connection and engagement. Emphasizing the importance of delivering information that benefits the audience can guide individuals in enhancing their communication effectiveness. By reframing anxiety as excitement and adopting audience-oriented tactics, communicators can overcome challenges and deliver impactful messages.
“Anything is fixable,” say Frances Frei and Anne Morriss. As cohosts of the Fixable podcast, they’re typically the ones doing the fixing, but on this special episode, they turn to Matt Abrahams for tips on what to do when communication breaks down.
Both Frei and her wife Morriss are public speakers; the former, a professor at Harvard Business School, the latter, a CEO and best-selling author. As they discuss with Matt Abrahams, perfectionism and self-doubt can often creep in, both during preparation before speaking and after the fact. According to Matt, effective communication is about “connection, not perfection.” Instead of putting pressure on ourselves to “get it right,” Matt encourages us to shift our focus from ourselves to those we’re speaking to. “Whenever you're communicating, you're in service of the audience you're communicating to,” he says. “It's not about you, it's about them and what you can do for them.”
In this podcast episode, Frei, Morriss, and Matt explore frameworks and strategies for speaking more spontaneously, building confidence, managing anxiety, and course-correcting when communication goes awry.