This week’s focus point…Influencing in Sound Bytes
I had a fascinating conversation with a fellow Rotarian after our club meeting last week. Rick and I were discussing the change in media over the past 3 decades and how information is both disseminated and heard. We laughed about the days that don’t seem so long ago when you had to get up to change the television channel, so you ended up having a longer attention span!
The conversation I had with Rick goes beyond simply media coverage. If you pay attention to presidential campaigns, popular television shows, or even business websites, you’re finding that we take in the world more and more in “sound bytes.” Now we can debate the efficacy of this for hours, but let’s at least admit it’s real. What’s that mean for you in a business sense?
It means that if you want to be influential, you need to become skilled in sound bytes. This means being interesting, charismatic, pithy, articulate, and above all else, giving valuable content. You might be trying to influence employees, co-workers, investors, prospective and current clients, or just your spouse on where you want to go on vacation. We live in a sound byte world, so don’t fight it. Rather embrace it by becoming masterful in its delivery. The art of being influential in the 21st century is different that it was 3 decades ago. You’d better become artful….
This week’s quote –
“Sometimes artistry must trump pure clarity. “
You can read more of Captain Jack’s musings in Dan’s new book, Unleashed Leadership (see cover below). Jack has an anecdote after every chapter. On pre-order now with a 40% discount. Click here to buy your signed copy today!
