Tactics to Enhance Team Participation Beyond Language - TD#128

Expressing yourself in a way that others hear, understand, and act on can be challenging. At times, it's complicated to speak out.

Working in an English-speaking team and trying to voice your thoughts can bring unexpected challenges.

Sometimes, it's about your language, but often, it's about your attitude.

Expressing yourself in a way that others hear, understand, and act on can be challenging. At times, it's complicated to speak out.

Other times, it's challenging to communicate your ideas effectively.

Last week, I joined a LinkedIn Live presentation with Maria Glazunova to discuss tactics for improving team participation beyond just language.

Here's the link to the event recording.

I'll transcribe a few key points below.

Highlights

Life is ugly

Don't wait for an ideal moment to share your ideas with your team. It won't come. We often idealize our situation, expecting others to make room for us. We must make room ourselves.

I respectfully disagree

“I respectfully disagree” is the most powerful way to make such room for yourself. Just say that sentence, and then speak up your mind. People will remember you and respect you for that. Pro tip: You don’t need to disagree with anyone; you can use it even when you agree.

Being in the room is enough

Being in the room gives you the chance to speak up. If the people in charge didn't want your input, they wouldn't have invited you.

The language barrier is not a thing

Don't let the fear of imperfect English stop you from sharing your thoughts. You might believe that your English isn't good enough and that this hinders your contributions. This belief creates a mental barrier. Don't allow it. No matter your language proficiency, always voice your opinions.

To master the crowd, you need to master yourself

Your ideas are as good as your ability to communicate them properly. Communication can be assessed, improved, and mastered. It’s your duty to be understood; own it.

The speaker bears the responsibility of being understood

If you believe you are in charge of what you say and others are in charge of what they understand, you are dead wrong. Your duty is to craft messages that are easy to hear, easy to listen to, easy to remember, and easy to act upon. Anything less than that is poor communication.

One-on-ones are a superpower

To succeed in your career, master the art of one-on-one interactions. Become someone who can speak with people and build rapport with them. Be the person people want to talk to. By talking to people individually, you can become known in the organization and build a reputation.

One-on-ones are the game changer.

Additional resources

Mastering the art of One-on-Ones - My upcoming mini-course

In a few weeks, I’m launching a mini-course exploring the art of one-on-one conversations. Until the big launch, I’m allowing you to sign up for free and take the whole course free of charge. Here is the sign-up form.

People Aren’t Meant to Talk This Much

The internet has many issues, but the root of many of them is that we are constantly communicating with one another. Before the advent of online tools, people spoke less often and with fewer people. The average person had a few conversations a day, and the largest group they addressed was likely a wedding reception or a company meeting, with a maximum of a few hundred people. There were few ways to amplify their words and spread beyond the original context.

It is essential to consider the possibility that there should be limits to the amount and frequency of communication people can have online.

Don't miss this article on this very topic.

The Bezos Blueprint

Six years after his speech at Princeton, Bezos revisited the theme of taking pride in your choices, not your gifts. "This is super important for young people to understand and for parents to preach to young people. It's easy for a talented young person to take pride in their gifts: 'I'm athletic,' 'I'm brilliant,' or 'I'm good at math.' That's fine. You should celebrate your gifts. You should be happy. But you can't be proud of them. What you can be proud of is your choices."

Don't miss the latest book by Carmine Gallo, "The Bezos Blueprint"; it's excellent!