One of the biggest stumbling blocks to good communication is the absence of context.  Context is defined as a set of facts or circumstances that surround a particular event, situation or communication.  At best, that information can help the listener put things in the proper perspective.  It can also be a persuasive tool to influence with integrity.

I recently watched an early Ryan Gosling film called, "Half Nelson."  In the film he plays an engaging and inventive teacher who also struggles with his dark side.  One of the ways he decides to get his students involved in history class is by giving them random dates in history.  Their job was to not only find out what happened on that day in time but to also provide context.  In one minute or less, they had to describe what happened, why it was significant, the impact it had and how it influenced the future.  It was amazing to listen to how the students so clearly defined and described a point in time.

This is a great exercise for all business presentations.  When you think of any of your key positioning statements  ("Our banking retail experience is solely focused on the customer…").  Respond to why is this significant (no one else is doing what we are doing in XXX  XXX); what impact it has on the customer (in recent JD Power Surveys, our bank was rated XXX);  and how you will influence the future ("we predict this trend will continue and we will remain at the front end…").  Asking yourself these questions is also helpful in determining the strength of your arguments and where you may need to fortify and/or explain.

If you are not influencing as powerfully as you’d like, consider context.  Give your audience the full picture so that they can let down their defenses, open their minds, engage in the conversation, feel confident in the information and be open to you as the speaker.

Former UCLA Basketball Coach John Wooden died at age 99 on June 4, 2010.  His legacy as a coach will live on and even in retirement – through speeches and books – he translated the lessons he shared with his championship teams to business professionals and anyone who wanted to discover the champion within themselves.  

To honor the man and create an opportunity to remind each of us what he said, I share a few of the quotes that always struck a chord with me:

"The main ingredient of stardom is the rest of the team."

"If you don’t have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?"

"A coach is someone who can give correction without causing resentment."

"Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out."

"If you are not making mistakes, you aren’t doing anything.  I’m positive that a doer makes mistakes."

"Success comes from knowing that you did your best to become the best you are capable of becoming."

"Success is never final, failure is never fatal.  It is courage that counts."

The list of memorable quotes could go on for much longer but I will stop here.  His track record tells us that he knows a thing or two about motivation, success and the meaning of true teamwork.  When his coaching career ended in 1975 his Bruins’ had won their 10th NCAA championship in 12 seasons – a record that will almost certainly never be matched.  Pull out one of these maxims the next time you have an opportunity to coach and inspire.

The first time I ever visited Africa I had a life-altering experience.  It had nothing to do with the incredible wildlife or beautiful landscapes I saw.  Those things were wonderful but what changed me was the people and most specifically it was the way they communicated with each other.  I was instantly struck by how friendly people were.  I consistently received a direct eye contact, wide smile, friendly “Jambo” (Swahili for hello).   I was told that in African culture it is considered very impolite and disrespectful to not greet everyone with whom you come in contact.  It is the custom…. it is what people do to continually re-enforce the idea of community.

I vowed on the plane trip back home to Chicago to keep that custom alive.  I pledged to change the world – one hello at a time – and begin greeting everyone I passed with an exuberant hello.  My friendly exuberance was met with mixed reviews.  Some thought I was crazy.  Others were confused (do I know this person?)  Many were clearly uncomfortable.  A minority responded in kind. 

As a communication professional, I have continued to pay attention to the difficulties we seem to have in our culture to connecting, casually, with others.  Recently I toured the facilities of a new client  - who I was working with to improve employee engagement – and immediately began to observe the communication that occurred, or didn’t, as we wandered the hallways and walkways.  Employees traveled to their destination with their heads down avoiding eye contact with others at all costs.  Sometimes a cell phone or Blackberry served as an accepted shield signaling that the individual was occupied and should not be disturbed. 

How would you rate your organization on hallway hellos?  How connected are your employees to one another?

Can changing the way people interact with one another as they walk through the halls of their office building really improve employee engagement?  This brings up the age-old question of what comes first – the chicken or the egg?  What I can say for sure is that what you observe in the walkways and hallways of your organization will tell you something important about how people feel and what they value. 

The benefits of hallway hellos are innumerous.  Can you remember recently when you received the gift of a friendly, sincere or energetic greeting from a colleague and how it made you feel?  For me, it can put a smile on my face, brighten my mood, wake me up, jumpstart creativity, pull me out of a state of self-absorption, create an opportunity to connect with a colleague and stimulate endorphins to bring about a sense of well being.  It can also transfer positive energy from the employee to the next customer with whom they may interact. If folks treat each other well, internally, that will naturally extend to the customer.  At its essence, it connects you to others and builds community.

How can you make Hallway Hellos an organizational habit?

·      Hold a Hallway Hello Week. 

o   Have fun with what may be a challenging issue for many or simply a lack of awareness.  Suggest that employees not only learn each other’s name but also enquire into what their role is in the company and look for synergies.

o   Encourage managers to debrief the exercise in their staff meetings. 

§  Was it easy?  Why? 

§  What did you learn about yourself / others?

§  How can we make this a habit rather than a one-week exercise?

·      Practice Close to Home

o   While my focus here is the workplace the same issue exists in our personal lives.  We can live in a neighborhood for many years and still not know a lot of our neighbors.  Practice greeting people while taking a stroll in the park, passing someone in the grocery store isle or waiting in line at the bank.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu once said, “We say in Africa that a person is a person through other persons.  A solitary human being is a contradiction in terms.  We are made for togetherness, for friendship, for fellowship.”   Africa is said to be the land of “ubuntu.”  It communicates the idea that we share a universal bond – one that connects us all.

Know that I am not promoting excessive or gratuitous greetings but instead I am encouraging the awareness of the opportunity that exists within the simple gesture of saying hello. 

 Great communicators are curious, kind, clear, and colorful

When I think of leaders and influencers who I admire, I always take note of the way they communicate.  Over time I have found that there are four qualities that appear to be consistently present in their approach to communication.

1 They are curious.  They seem genuinely interested in the perspective, insights and ideas of others.  This is not something you can fake but I do believe it can be cultivated.

2. They are kind.  By this I mean that they are capable of empathy – the ability to put themselves in another’s shoes and bring that sensibility and compassion to the conversation.  Sometimes you can read it in the eyes – a tenderness that shows them to be vulnerable and approachable.

3. They are clear.  Strong communicators know that having a point of view is engaging.  We are drawn to people who are clear and decisive and know where they are headed.  When that clarity is balanced with genuine curiosity and kindness – that individual is listened to, respected and followed.

4. They are colorful.  Engaging leaders use language to paint pictures in the minds of their listeners.  They tell stories, use metaphors and create vivid images that are memorable.