Make a good first impression. Like a mantra, this thought gets chiselled into our minds from a young age. So when we don’t land the job, don’t seal the deal or don’t get the date, so often we blame it on making a bad first impression. And since we invest so much importance on these […]
Tag Archives: communication
A Call To Meaning
Recently it was put to me by the president that I was unable to build relationships. It might be true. Never the less, this sweeping accusation was pitched without notice over the phone together with a mixed bag of erroneous, easily falsifiable half truths and myth. In appearance the whole episode bore resemblance to one […]
Beyond the Utopian World of Consensus
Synergy is a word that means a great deal to me. But there are times when it just can’t be achieved by goodwill alone. Three years ago my husband and I moved into a co-housing community. Co-housing communities are typically run by consensus agreement. They’re usually about peacefully co-existing in a viable, sustainable, harmonious setting, […]
Fixing Family Dynamics
It is interesting how the process of trying to fix family dynamics usually backfires. Here’s my most recent example. An aged member of my family has profound hearing loss and a tendency, as the years go by, to personalize things rather morosely. The former condition has him missing out on the mundane conversations that make […]
Listening To Spaces
Ramblings of an Old Flower Child 80% of effective communication is active listening. Another way to say that is, “Seek to understand before being understood.” It’s what we taught in our Effective Communications class and is the basis of good counselling, diplomacy and just plain getting along. Essentially, active listening means being engaged, silent and […]