•  Tell it like it is

No one really likes spin; integrity and willingness to tell the truth are very valuable commodities

  • If you really believe it, show it

More and more people believe only what they can see happening with their own eyes in their own world.  So say and then do.

  • Listen before you think or speak

Active listening is where you make a point of finding out what people think rather than making assumptions.  Strangely people who’ve listened first, tend to get listened to, when they speak.

  • Headlines first, then the whole story

Attention spans are short, get your main message in first, attention will be sustained if it is something that benefits them.

  • Consistency is the clearest message

If you do the same thing again and again people will notice, understand and trust you to do the same thing in the future.

  • If it really matters, do it face to face

Email is not communication it is like broadcasting in that you never really know whether people are taking notice.

  • Involvement is the best persuader

If you want real understanding then you need to get people involved.

  • Encourage feedback and act on it

If you pay lip service to feedback you’ll quickly stop getting it.  The more that you act on feedback, the more feedback people will give you.

  • Little and often is better than long and loud

Rather than big launches go for continual ‘context building’ in team briefings, that way people will gradually understand the importance of the big picture.

 

Adapted from a column by Guy Browning, Director of Smokehouse and Columnist for the Guardian and People Management