How To Improve Communication and Facilitation with the FINESSE Mental Model
After a guest lecture at a major US university, I recently had a follow-up conversation with a graduate student. The discussion centered...
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Communicating with FINESSE
Technical professionals dedicated to getting senior management to understand
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JD Solomon
- Jan 4
- 3 min
How Communicating with FINESSE Empowers Effective Communication
On January 4, 2023, I got to provide the kick-off guest lecture for a graduate class at Auburn University. The course is part of a...
CWF
- Dec 4, 2022
- 1 min
Three Communication Workshop Formats for Successful STEM Professionals
STEM (Science Technology Engineering Math) professionals usually are not natural communicators. However, STEM professionals work in a...
JD Solomon
- Nov 2, 2022
- 2 min
How to Communicate with FINESSE in Information Sessions
There was a lot to unpack from the 45-minute information session. After all, three different governmental units evaluated the issue for...
JD Solomon
- Oct 26, 2022
- 2 min
Telling Your Story Produces Relaxed Communication, Effective Technical Presentations
As trusted advisors, technical professionals stand on the data first. Telling the story of the data overpowers most of our communication...
CWF
- Oct 21, 2022
- 1 min
Know What You Are Talking About
Epictetus was a Greek philosopher who was born into slavery. He believed all external events are beyond our control. Epictetus believed...
JD Solomon
- Oct 18, 2022
- 3 min
Three Things Every Trusted Advisor Should Know to Communicate with FINESSE
Making a decision requires an irrevocable allocation of resources. In a world full of complexity and uncertainty, decision makers turn to...
CWF
- Oct 14, 2022
- 1 min
A Rightly Timed Pause...
Mark Twain was a writer, publisher, lecturer, and the greatest humorist the United States has produced. We share his quote today in the...
JD Solomon
- Oct 13, 2022
- 2 min
How Three Groups Communicate Their Roles Through One Guiding Graphic
Resilience – the ability of communities, economies, and ecosystems within South Carolina to anticipate, absorb, recover, and thrive when...
JD Solomon
- Oct 12, 2022
- 2 min
How to Force Uncertainty to Respond (and Improve Communication)
Communicating strategic decisions is a long game. And the long game consists of complexity (many interrelated parts) and uncertainty (not...
CWF
- Oct 7, 2022
- 1 min
Communicate with FINESSE by Speaking to Everyone in the Same Way
Many frequently cited quotes are attributed to Albert Einstien, including, "Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler."...
JD Solomon
- Oct 6, 2022
- 3 min
Possibly the Worst PowerPoint Slide I Have Ever Seen
Well, maybe not the absolute worst because I have seen some bad ones. But this one is in the Top 10. Good Intentions This slide was part...
JD Solomon
- Oct 5, 2022
- 2 min
How One State Communicates Climate Variability (without saying climate change)
The term climate change conjures pollical passions that make it nearly impossible to discuss or mitigate the issues that the public cares...
JD Solomon
- Oct 3, 2022
- 1 min
Seven Simple Questions That Empower Communicating with FINESSE
Avoid initial statements and ask questions instead. Keep your questions simple because there is power in a well-placed question. And...
CWF
- Oct 1, 2022
- 1 min
Simple And To The Point Is Always Best
If anyone knows something about technical communications, it is Guy Kawasaki. Kawasaki did two tours of duty at Apple, the first to help...
JD Solomon
- Sep 30, 2022
- 2 min
Replace “You” with “We” in Your Presentations
Listen closely the next time a technical specialist or a self-proclaimed expert delivers a presentation. The chances are good that they...
JD Solomon
- Sep 27, 2022
- 2 min
Improve Your Communication of Rare Events Before They Happen
Low-likelihood, high-consequence (“rare”) events present special challenges for effective communication. Pre-event plans are often well...
JD Solomon
- Sep 26, 2022
- 2 min
Three Indicators of a Rare Event to Help Your Communication Strategy
The high-consequence, low-likelihood nature of rare events makes them unexpectedly and disproportionately impactful. Rare events can...
JD Solomon
- Sep 23, 2022
- 1 min
Ask a Question (avoid making a statement)
There is nothing more powerful than a good question. It provokes deeper thought by the receiver. It demonstrates your empathy for what...
JD Solomon
- Sep 18, 2022
- 2 min
Five Reasons Being An Effective Communicator Helps Your Technical Career
We are all called upon weekly (or daily) to explain or defend our work. As technical professionals, video conferences, interfacing with...
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