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Communicating with clarity is a core skill of leaders, and Matt Abrahams has been teaching leaders how to communicate for almost thirty years, eleven of them at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business.
Editor’s note: This is the fourth in a series of guest posts where people from all walks of life share their best advice in times like these. A big thanks to the leaders who volunteered to share their life experiences. Reflection on the past is a deeply personal exercise. The willingness to share it with the world, especially in the written form, is a commendable act of vulnerability. For this alone, they have my deepest gratitude.
Matt’s YouTube presentation Think Fast, Talk Smart: Communication Techniques has been viewed over 31 million times. His popular Think Fast, Talk Smart podcast is the winner of a Podcast Webby award. A published author, his latest book, Think Faster, Talk Smarter, set to be published by Simon & Schuster, is out this fall.
I’ve not only benefited from Matt’s guidance in my career but also had the privilege to work with him in my client organizations. In his trademark succinctness, he shares his advice to today’s leaders.
My Best Advice
“Here is the best advice I have for a leader asking to make sense of these crazy times. For me, it’s one word, the F word: focus. First and foremost, we must focus on our area of expertise. What is it that you do and do well? Focus there. Second, focus on your audience or user. What do they need? What’s relevant and salient for them? Third, focus your messaging, how you communicate to your users, to your employees, to your constituents. If you focus on these three aspects, you will be able to cut through the crazy noise and distraction and deliver value. I hope this helps.”
