Keeping It In Perspective!

I Am Deeply Grateful

to spend time in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, where I am writing this note to you today. And visiting family. And going to the beach.?

You Already Know

how easy it is to feel stuck in our everyday routines, challenges, issues, responsibilities. That’s part of being a grown-up, I’m afraid. And sometimes it can get in the way of us communicating as well as we want to. ??

Marcel Proust Said

"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes." Of course new landscapes can help (see beach photo above), but I love the “new eyes” image. Because it speaks to me of perspective. And keeping it all in perspective can make you a better communicator.?

Our Viewpoint

is our point of view, based on the life we live and the experiences we’ve accrued. It’s typically a fixed point and there’s nothing wrong with that. Except it may prevent us from understanding other’s viewpoints, making it harder to build consensus, persuade, influence and lead.

Today’s Video: Big Sky (0:45)

Lifting Our Eyes

up from our screens and our habitual way of seeing things offers a wider view. The massive sky above us can symbolize infinite possibility, BIG thinking, new options, expansiveness. And oh, what a glorious sky it is! ??

I Don’t Have Answers

for the deep divisions in today’s fraught cultural and political environment. But I do know that how we communicate with one another is one of many vital paths to better understanding.????

Here Are A Few Phrases ?

to help share or shift perspective. Try sprinkling them in your everyday business communications. And be inspired to think of more of your own!?

• Let me put that in context…
• Let’s take a step back here, and look at the broader picture…
• If we focus on more specific details, we see that…
• Examining the industry as a whole…
• I’d like to share a different way of looking at this…
• You know, I often find an analogy helpful here. If we think of…
• It might be helpful to consider a different aspect of…
• I’d like to offer an alternate view…
• We might want to explore…
• Instead of either/or, what if we thought about this as “yes, and”…
• Let’s reflect on a couple of different approaches…?

When the going gets rough, take a few deep breaths, think Big Sky, pull back to get perspective…and give it a go. You’ve got this. Let me know how it works for you!

Be the happy recipient of more great tips and techniques, along with intelligent musings on the state of communications, by signing up for Diane Ripstein’s regular NewsNotes?right here.