Just Saying - The BRIEF Lab

Every professional will face challenging circumstances, tasks, and decisions. With all our busy schedules, however, many of us will not set aside enough time alone to reflect on them, accept them and address them. We all need to embrace quiet time to create a mindset to embrace what is objectively tough (versus ignoring or running away from it) then talking about it and doing it. The post Ep. 325...

Are we taking advantage of the known pockets of downtime in our day or week to plan for quiet time alone? After a recent conversation with a former client and friend, I realized that his suggestion to take Friday off could be a potential way to wind down from others without taking the day off. The post Ep. 324 – Taking Fridays off (for quiet) appeared first on Just Saying .

We might be dominating conversations and not even notice it. In our daily exchanges, it’s likely that someone is doing all the talking. In this week’s episode, I provide different ways to notice this more, whether it’s you doing it or someone else. The post Ep. 323 – Letting other people speak appeared first on Just Saying .

Most meeting start weak and never gain momentum. It’s up to the designated meeting leader to start every meeting with clarity, organization, conviction, and purpose. As a seasoned meeting facilitator, I will share simple ways to start strong, set the tone and get every participant ready for a meaningful exchange. The post Ep. 322 – The Meeting Kickoff Sets the Tone appeared first on Just Saying .

We choose where we invest our attention, and headlines are powerful tools to get that done. Recently, I inadvertently defaulted to a lame opening and paid the price. In this week’s episode, I will have you consider ways to be more deliberate and decisive when you grab people’s attention by using headlining as a better version of BLUF (bottom line up front). The post Ep. 321 – Good isn’t a headline...

One of the most important roles of any successful professional is to lead a program (or project) to completion. Throughout the entire process, from start to finish, many different stakeholders need to hear a clean overview that conveys the right level of detail and connects with their motivations and interests. Getting the executive summary wrong at any time might mean losing support, funding, cla...

In moments of inspiration, frustration, or even desperation, we need to deliberately choose our communication outlets. Getting that wrong might create conflict, build burdens, and produce unintended consequences. In this episode, I discuss how to be much more intentional when assembling and selecting from a list of different people that serve the right role for us at diverse times and circumstance...

Deep work drives real value creation. It’s only when we live and work primarily in the shallows that we see our value rapidly decline. In this week’s episode, I talk about how Cal Newport’s timeless book “Deep Work” is a must-read for professionals that want to be valuable and communicate with profound impact – and talk about how a dedicated time and place for quiet is essential to learning to do...

Anyone can get off to a great start when writing or saying something, but can they wrap it up on time and on cue. In this episode, I get you to start with the end in mind and work backwards. It turns out that sticking your landing is the last thing you do, but the first thing the judges and audience remember. The post Ep. 318 – Is the end anywhere in sight? appeared first on Just Saying .

In the best presentations, you and the audience don’t notice at all that you’re presenting.  Like breathing, it can either be something you pay too much attention to or seems very natural and imperceptible. Don’t hold your breath, but get ready to take in a different, refreshing perspective on quality presentations. The post Ep. 317 – Presenting is like breathing appeared first on Just Saying .

After you write something, it might look good. It might look amazing even. But how does it sound to the reader? Is it stiff, clunky, and off key? Or does it flow? In this week’s episode, I share a perspective to improve your writing by focusing more on how it sounds when you read it aloud or to yourself. The post Ep. 316 – The sound of good writing appeared first on Just Saying .

In this second part, I take a cue from a comedian who shares some surprising insights about why some of his best humor tanked several nights at a comedy club. Even if he thought it was hilarious, his audience couldn’t wait forever and needed him to get to the point quickly and convincingly – and not take any shortcuts. In getting your great idea approved, you need to do most of the heavy lifting (...

It would be naïve to think that the best ideas always win. In reality, many sub-par ideas get approved while the brilliant ones get buried and left behind. In this week’s episode, I gain some opening-line inspiration from Charles Dickens and dive into how to determine if something is actually a great idea and the irony of who gets to say so (whether we think it’s fair or not). The post Ep. 314 – A...

As we close out another year (and start a new one), I share three different perspectives to get you ready. First, I highlight a short list of noteworthy personal milestones. Second, I list my top 10 podcast episodes over the past 12 months. And finally, I provide a brief reflection on what’s need to improve your skills as a clear and concise communicator. The post Ep. 313 – Chit-Chat Cheer (and a...

We cut people off more often than we may realize. Though we may feel it’s warranted, the instant impulse may hurt us in more ways than we care to admit.  In this week’s podcast, I share five different impacts when we do this to others and a few practical ways we can be more self-aware to address it. The post Ep. 312 – 5 Costs of Interrupting Someone appeared first on Just Saying .

With so much competing for our attention during the day, it may be easy to blame the people, digital devices, and demands of the world on our divided minds. We also must be much more aware of how we distract ourselves and have no one else to blame. In this week’s podcast, I share five different costs when we let that happen to ourselves. The post Ep. 311 – 5 Costs of Interrupting Yourself appeared...

What do you do when people habitually approach you with complaints, criticism, and unconstructive comments? Most of don’t like it, yet we play along and communicate with little hope the conversation will end up being beneficial. This week, I make a few suggestions of what you can say to stop these exchanges before they start. The post Ep. 310 – Setting Boundaries When Criticism Comes Calling appea...

Analogies can be a gift worth giving, or a dull ax on hard wood. Effective and efficient communicators know how to use them (not abuse them). In this episode, I share some thoughts about how to make them work for you so you’re rock solid, and avoiding some of the pitfalls when you venture on thin ice. The post Ep. 309 – The Pros and Cons of Analogies appeared first on Just Saying .

Many of the meetings we attend or lead simply need to be completely blown up and rebuilt entirely. Maybe the original intent has been altered, or we have fallen into a rhythm and routine and lowered the bar too low. Sometimes, we just might need to have a meeting to design all the ones that don’t work. The post Call back Episode – Ep. 263 – Meetings redesigned and redefined appeared first on Just...

Thanksgiving Day is a wonderful time to gather and celebrate with family and friends. This time of year (all the time, for that matter) is a great time to quietly contemplate – and take note of – all the things in our lives that we are grateful for, from the simple to the profound. The post Call back Episode – Episode 214 Thanksgiving: notes of gratitude appeared first on Just Saying .

A recent recommendation from a colleague stopped me in my tracks. His two simple words made me not only heed his advice but also pause to think about the power of deliberate, direct counsel for professional and personal improvement. Especially in a day with non-stop noise and constant choices, “highly recommended” can help clear the clutter. In this episode, I provide some advice on how to give (a...

Quality collaboration counts more than ever when workers aren’t in the office every day. Whether they are hybrid or fully remote, the time they have together (in person or online) is precious. In this episode, I share ways to get ready for collaboration like it’s game time and how to have the right mindset to communicate and connect with impact (and not add to the noise). The post Ep. 307 – Collab...

CEOs are delusional to think they can order employees back to the office and turn back the clock. We live in a hybrid world now and employees are resisting the call not just because of the flexibility and elimination of a commute. In this episode, we talk about the deeper reason why the RTO mandate falls flat and how leaders need to reimagine the workplace. The post Ep. 306 – Return-to-office mand...

Busy people are always complaining about how little time they have. In reality, they have plenty of time yet run from it and spend bits and pieces of their day creating and consuming noise. In this week’s episode, I share a different perspective on time management that will challenge you to get off the hamster wheel. The post Call Back Episode – Ep 268 – Running from time (not out of i...

Over the years, I have counseled many senior leaders on how to develop and deliver a clear and concise message. Whether it was unveiling a new product or strategy, sharing their value proposition, or explaining a complex topic, they all ask the same question: How do we communicate the same message to different people? In this episode, you will learn that even though each audience has distinct need...