Happy Sunday Everyone:
I think we complicate our personal lives and business lives by lack of communication. I also believe to a large degree that communication or lack thereof creates or solves the majority of our problems. In the past few weeks I have had personal events, team events, and corporate events go wrong, all of which would have been solved with better communication. Personal life, Kim and I found ourselves in a fairly large argument because we stopped communicating about how we wanted to parent our boys, very small thing turned big because we weren’t on the same page. If we stayed on the track of talking about it weekly, and making sure we’re in sync, 100% guaranteed argument would not have happened. Team-we have a system, we call the client, we call the referral partner, two calls, every time. One of my team members didn’t follow protocol (which I’ve done a few times myself), Realtor had to hear from client regarding information we should have provided directly, making her look uninformed, and she wasn’t happy. On the flip side, by and large, my team and I have a reputation for proactive communication every step of the way with our business partners, this creates trust. My business partners know that I’m going to update them every Tuesday no matter what on any purchase we have going, at a minimum. Is it simple, yes, is it consistent, yes, do I ever miss, NO….and what’s the outcome…they do in fact trust us, and as important, it prevents incoming panic calls asking for updates, which in the end, interrupts my day, my teams day, and creates a negative experience for my partners. How many times have you said “I should reach out and call this client”, then you don’t, 30 minutes later the call comes in….Do you have any idea how insincere you sound when you say “I was just about to call you”…SURE. Lack of communication creates assumptions, it creates stress, it creates lack of clarity, it creates doubt, it creates lack of trust, it creates problems. Consistent communication creates trust, it helps ensure we’re on the same page (as a couple/team/company), it minimizes self-talk, and doubt, it minimizes the chances of the other persons brain making up its own stories, rarely of which are positive, or true. For me personally, communication holds me accountable. If I openly communicate my vision for my team, and my business, I need to hold myself more accountable for the execution of that. If I communicate to Kim I’m going to work on X, I hold myself accountable to do it. If I communicate with my team, or Kim, consistently, my plan and my vision will be executed on. If I slip (like I did), bad stuff happens. If I slip too much in my personal life, Kim would distance herself….that’s not good. If I stop communication with my team, they’ll leave me. I’ve talked before about the simple question of “Am I an asset or a liability right now?”…personal life, business, friends, you name it…you’re an asset or a liability every waking hour to someone or something. Communication goes in the asset column, lack thereof goes in the liability. Take a glance at your world and figure out where you can have better communication and do it.
Side note-In my speech at my parents 50th last year (who are still massively in love), I talked about the secret of their success was the fact that they always grew together. If I rewrote it today, I’d say they never stopped communicating, which is why they grew together, and never apart. This can be applied to everything in our lives, both personally and professionally.
Have a great week ahead.