As we try to do each year, and especially in this most difficult one, we want to leave you with something that both dignifies and celebrates the season, and exemplifies the spirit and joy of what 2020 has been for all of us. Please, sit back, relax and enjoy.
There are a lot of challenges facing us in the public participation biz, not the least of which is the constant evolution of demographic change. Adding that to the growth and expansion of technology, and the thermonuclear political war underway in the U.S., makes for interesting times. This is a brief, interesting look at some… read more →
We’re watching what will turn out to be the costliest and most tragic risk communication failure in modern human history. I’m talking about communicating the probability and magnitude of risks that actually harm people but don’t bother them enough for them to do anything about. We’re setting new COVID-19 daily infection and death rates with… read more →
It’s common to think that for me to win, you have to lose. That may be true in sports, but not in most other areas. There’s an old axiom in the sales profession that says, “you can get what you want if you can help the other guy get what he wants.” Mutual gain is… read more →
And for those who share my short attention span, I think you’ll enjoy this list of exceptionally brief but useful tidbits to help you get your point(s) across more successfully. Read More
All of us wish we’d bought stock in Zoom a year ago and we’ve adapted to moving training, coaching and our work with clients and communities online. Fact is, it’s working quite a bit better than we originally thought it might. It’s definitely different and doing interpersonal work in this impersonal environment has limitations, but… read more →
Democracy is the genesis of public participation – power held by the people. In 1787, when the Founding Fathers had hammered out the U.S. Constitution in Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Benjamin Franklin told an inquiring woman what the gathering had produced, “A republic, madam, if you can keep it.” A republic means a representative government… read more →
Research has shown that people can make judgements about someone’s likeability, trustworthiness and competence after seeing their face for less than a tenth of a second. Nonverbal communication factors are even more important for the people doing the judging when trust is low and concern is high, which defines much of the work we do with… read more →
Is it that we just don’t want to deal with or talk with people who think differently, we don’t need to, or that we’ve forgotten how? Actually, I’ve come to realize that it’s all of the above and more; there is no one easy answer. Some people are just so embedded in their own beliefs… read more →