Engagement

Originally published in the Boulder Daily Camera and the Longmont Daily Times-Call.

Are you engaging your audiences? If you don’t know, you probably aren’t. If you aren’t you’re probably operating in an echo chamber of your own construction. Stephen R. Covey noted that our strength lies in differences, not in similarities. Only by finding out how others think, what they value, how
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Originally published in the Boulder Daily Camera and the Longmont Daily Times-Call.

I don’t care for chicken fried steak. I prefer hamburgers. Normally this isn’t an issue, but in high school it became a concern of mine. Back in the day I was a cheerleader. This involved a whole lot of fun, quote a bit of practice and some very long road
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Originally published in the Boulder Daily Camera and the Longmont Daily Times-Call.

What if you threw a party and no one came? A month or so ago, I began putting together my Thanksgiving party. Figuring that I didn’t need to worry about the date, I delved into the guest list and menu. Somewhere along the way my son pointed out that he
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Originally published in the Boulder Daily Camera and the Longmont Daily Times-Call.

Most people in business have gotten the call. It begins with an polite request for a few minutes of your time. The caller usually asks if you’ve received a letter, email or call from their organization. Then the conversation evolves into an impassioned plea for support of an event, a
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Originally published in the Boulder Daily Camera and the Longmont Daily Times-Call.

Henry Sell knew that details matter. The publisher and editor of Town and Country Magazine was a well-known figure in the New York literary scene years ago. He loved books and the West. After reading an article that my dad wrote about the West for the Rocky Mountain News, Sell
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Originally published in the Boulder Daily Camera and the Longmont Daily Times-Call.

“Thank you for calling! Have we resolved your issue today?” “No,” I reply. “You haven’t helped me.” “Okay!” a perky voice responded. “We’ll be sending you an email survey that we hope you will take the time to fill out. Quality customer service is important to us and only by
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Originally published in the Boulder Daily Camera and the Longmont Daily Times-Call.

He walked in late, looked around, and took a seat. I didn’t recognize him, but the late-comer seemed quite at home. I continued facilitating the group, but wondered why the stranger wasn’t participating. Finally I sent a question his way. “What do you think?” “I really don’t know what you
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Originally published in the Boulder Daily Camera and the Longmont Daily Times-Call.

Why didn’t I know that. That was the question that kept running through my mind as I recently sat through a memorial service for a dear friend. Why didn’t I know that? Why didn’t I know about all of the hobbies he enjoyed, the different lives he touched, the profound
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Originally published in the Boulder Daily Camera and the Longmont Daily Times-Call.

“What’s a little boy have to do to get something to eat around here?” The question came from somewhere below the crowd. I looked down into the big brown eyes of my adorable son and instantly felt remorse. My son and I had not communicated effectively. It was years ago
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Originally published in the Boulder Daily Camera and the Longmont Daily Times-Call.

On the roadmap to business success, communication is a two-way street. Communication in one direction entails reinforcing relationships with existing customers/clients and reaching out to new ones. Traffic in the other direction encompasses inquiries, feedback and critiques. Success lies in maintaining a smooth, candid flow in both directions. Business owners
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