Communication Skills Articles

Meeting Methodologist or Meeting Designer? A Rhetorical Shift.

Clients frequently contact us about facilitating a meeting or workshop on behalf of an individual or organization. It might be a large, multi-national firm planning a complicated, and potentially...

Facilitator Training 101: Four Required Roles Supporting Effective Facilitation

We all have skills to perform many roles in life, such as switching quickly between parent and child when attending a family gathering, or switching quickly between friend and customer when shopping...

STOP! Were We Even In The Same Meeting?

Daniel Pink’s newest research proves that the end of a meeting is more important than the beginning. Endings leave lasting impressions. Recency triumphs over primacy. And yet, how often have...

Why facilitation remains an important skill for innovation and success

This month we're reposting an interview by Douglas Ferguson with Terrence Metz, Managing Director of MGRUSH Facilitation Training. This article originally appeared on voltagecontrol.com. (Reprinted...

5 Highly Effective Words for Business Meetings: Warning, Proceed With Caution!

Jul 2, 2020 | Communication Skills, Facilitation Skills, Leadership Skills, Managing Conflict, Meeting Structure, Meeting Support

Research conducted by professor Cynthia Rudin of M.I.T. and student Been Kim, on highly effective words for business...

Don’t Blame Meeting Failure on Your Online Meeting Technology

May 5, 2020 | Communication Skills, Facilitation Skills, Leadership Skills, Managing Conflict, Meeting Structure, Meeting Tools

Whether you use Zoom, Teams, WebEx, GoToMeeting, or another online meeting technology, don’t blame the failure of your...

Quick Tips For More Effective Meetings

Apr 4, 2020 | Communication Skills, Facilitation Skills, Leadership Skills, Managing Conflict, Meeting Support

Today we bring you quick tips for more effective meetings. "Distribution Talk With Jason Bader", a podcast that...

How to Make Thinking Visible — Three Forms of Business Argumentation Support

Communication Skills, Facilitation Skills

The main reason for categorizing input relies on a common purpose. Most groups gather around a common purpose. For...

Appreciate the Value of Argumentation and Meeting Argumentation

Communication Skills, Decision Making, Facilitation Skills, Leadership Skills, Managing Conflict

A strong facilitator should understand and appreciate the value of argumentation, specifically meeting argumentation....

When Smart People Make Dumb Decisions – SMART vs DUMB?

Analysis Methods, Communication Skills, Decision Making

Smart vs Dumb? According to experts in an emerging field called the Science of Choice, everyone can learn to make...

Nonverbal Expressions: How to (Not) Gesture while Facilitating

Communication Skills, Leadership Skills

Nonverbal expressions, like words (see Facilitate Meaning, Not Words), connote multiple messages. After you finish...

Facilitating ‘Genetic’ Differences: Similar Values with Different Priorities

Communication Skills, Decision Making, Prioritizing

Most meeting participants embrace a set of similar values with different priorities. The difference lies in their...

Three Types of Persuasion for Individuals to Embrace Organizational Goals

Communication Skills, Meeting Support

Meeting and workshop participants by definition ought to be participatory. To get and stay involved, subject matter...

Facilitating Cultural Shift from Group Orientation to Shared Project Team Values

Communication Skills, Leadership Skills, Meeting Support

We have argued for years that unclear speaking (or writing) is indicative of unclear thinking and will impact shared...

Beware of the Overconfidence Effect With Subject Matter Experts and be Prepared to Challenge

Communication Skills, Leadership Skills

You and I have been victims of numerous false, urban legends. So please beware of the overconfidence effect among...

A Metaphor is Worth a Thousand Pictures: Explained Via Analogy

Analysis Methods, Communication Skills

In the role of facilitator, you will discover a lot of power by using metaphors or analogies to explain your method....

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