Listening

Yes, Yes AND, Yes again! What does “Yes, AND…” accomplish?

February 17, 2015

In a brainstorming session it doesn’t always serve to “yes, and” the first idea suggested as we would in an improv show. We want to build on an idea that will satisfy the need we’re targeting, and this seems to require discriminatory thinking, which seems to be opposite of ‘yes, and.’ How do you reconcile/incorporate this into the improv toolbox we are offering?

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The Challenge Of Knowing Too Much – The Curse Of Knowledge

September 2, 2013

In the world of theater we call it a stumble-through. It’s the rehearsal where you put down your script, even though you’re not ready, and put the show on its feet. You get through it, perhaps a little dinged up, but now you know what you need to work on.

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Can you sell a product without selling your soul?

August 19, 2013

This is the new model for sales in the information age. Listening to what people need. Building relationships. Being present and responsive leaves room for my customers to tell me what will be best for them, and my ability to meet that request allows everyone involved to walk away feeling great about the transaction… and there’s nothing icky about that!

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Relationships Are Not About Reality, They Are About Perception!

April 15, 2013

If you don’t know how people see you, hear you and think about what you say, or what they need to see, hear and experience in order to consider what you say, what you don’t know can hurt you. Everything you say and do is filtered by perception, which results from a mental process called generalization, where little things add up–both the good and the bad. Why leave this to chance?

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Not Knowing The Way Forward Leads To Inaction

October 1, 2012

When people don’t move forward, it could be because they don’t know how. They may know what, who, where and when, even why, but without knowing how to proceed, the only action is inaction. So they stop, and wait. But with the right question, and find the deeper structure that leads to action!

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When People Get Confused, Get The Nouns!

September 17, 2012

Did you know that if you ask people ‘how’ questions without occasionally referencing the what, who, where and when, people tend to get so confused that they go into a trance state? Well, it’s true.

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If You Want To Be Effective, You’ve Got To Be Specific

September 10, 2012

A New York City taxi driver told me that there are a few essential ingredients for driving a taxicab successfully. You need a comprehensive understanding of how your city is laid out. You need an excellent reference map, committed to memory when possible. And you need to know what questions to ask and when to ask them to get your fare to their destination.

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Assigning Blame Changes Nothing – Questions Change Everything

December 14, 2011

The formula of being the effect of a cause is as old as time, and is in common use whenever people are miserable. The right question can break the connection of cause to effect, and the spectacular effect is to find the deep structure information that seeks to be the cause of an effect.

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