A Leadership Experiment on Intentional Communication

You don’t need me to point out the importance and power of communication at the moment - just look at the news. From Trump’s, “When the looting starts, the shooting starts”, to the Sheriff Chris Swanson’s, “We wanna be with you for real… these cops love you… you tell us what you need us to do”, we are awash with the power of communication to either divide or heal.

What really sets these two messages apart is intention. I won’t speak to Trump’s intention, but I feel confident in assuming that Sheriff Swanson’s intention was to be a force for peace and to show solidarity.

The real question is: How often do we really pause to reflect on our intention before we open our mouths?

Most of the time we are driven by subconscious intentions and ego-based needs. We communicate because:

• we want to be listened to
• we want to be important
• we want to right or
• we want people to agree with us.

With ego-based needs like these driving us, we really shouldn’t be surprised when our communications are poorly received.

When I ask clients to reflect on the question, “What is my intention for this meeting or conversation?”, or, “What do I want to happen as a result of it?”, they typically take a long pause before a deeper awareness and insight surfaces. Then they communicate because they want to:

• galvanize
• stretch and challenge
• build a consensus
• inspire action
• foster collaboration or
• grow rapport and understanding.

Getting clear on intention immediately changes your tone, choice of words and energy. It shifts your communication from scattergun to high-impact.

This week’s experiment is simple, fast and super-powerful. Give it a go and see what you discover. If you find it helpful, please share it

Your Leadership Experiment

1. Pick one meeting or conversation this week where you want to practice intentional communication.
2. What’s your intention for that meeting/conversation? What do you want to happen as a result of it?
3. Given your audience, how might you need to adapt your communication style to enable that to happen? Do you need to talk more or less? Bring more or less emotion into the conversation? Ask more questions or get on an inspiring soapbox? Do you need to soften your tone, or bring high energy in? How do you need to adapt your message and style to your audience?
4. During the meeting, notice how it feels to practice intentional communication. Is it uncomfortable in moments where your ego needs are challenged? If it is uncomfortable, just notice it ;-)