Knock knock. Who’s there? The interrupting cow. The interrupting cow— MOOOOOO! If you’ve ever told that joke, you already understand the power of interruption. The joke is still funny, but interrupting isn’t. Unfortunately, many of us bring that same habit into real conversations, especially difficult ones. And when emotions are already high, interruptions can derail a conversation before it even has a chance to succeed. As an off-the-chart extrovert, I’ve been guilty of being a dreaded...

I was lying in the dentist’s chair a while back, waiting to get a tooth repaired after part of it chipped off. The dentist told me about the deadening shot and forthcoming repair work; I know the routine. While having two people and a bunch of equipment in my mouth is not my favorite, I’m composed. The work begins. I’m watching the TV mounted parallel to my body for easy viewing. What a cushy life we lead these days if you have dental insurance. Then I heard my dentist asking me if I’m ok,...

When things at work are going well, people celebrate the wins. When things go wrong at work, people rarely say, “Wow, I probably didn’t communicate that very well.” Instead, they blame the team, the culture, or that one person who “just doesn’t get it.” Cue the frustration and cue the call for communication training. Since my mission is to equip people with elite communication skills, I’m all about it. After years of working with teams, I’ve learned this: most workplace frustration isn’t...