Just Saying - The BRIEF Lab

Self-Improvement

About

The point of this podcast is to help you become an effective and efficient communicator. The topics that we discuss tackle many of the most pressing issues that people face in a world flooded by information, interruptions and distractions. The promise is that you and your ideas can stand out consistently. Hope you enjoy. [ Just Saying ]

Episodes

  • Ep. 394 – Be a gossip for good

    This episode discusses the common tendency to gossip negatively about people. It proposes an alternative approach: speaking positively about individuals when they are not present, effectively becoming a 'gossip for good'.

  • Ep. 393 – Is your identity at risk with AI

    This episode discusses the potential risks AI poses to the development of professional identity, drawing on insights from a Harvard Business Review article about AI's impact on workplace learning.

  • Ep. 392 – Say the most important thing first

    This episode discusses the importance of clear and concise communication, emphasizing the need to state the most important information first. It explains how speaking in headlines and getting to the bottom line upfront (BLUF) prevents key…

  • Ep. 391 – How to make a boring topic interesting

    In episode 391 of Just Saying, host explains simple tactics to make boring, dry, or technical topics more interesting and ensure the message gets across.

  • Ep. 390 – Getting people to admit they have a problem

    This episode discusses a quiet influence principle for helping individuals acknowledge problems. It suggests gaining permission to explore areas for improvement, allowing people to willingly admit what needs fixing, rather than attempting…

  • Ep. 389 – Why you need to avoid context camping

    This episode of Just Saying discusses the communication pitfall of 'context camping,' where excessive background information can bore or lose the audience before the main point is made.

  • Ep. 388 – SPEAR: a new verbal method to sharpen your point

    This episode introduces the S.P.E.A.R. method, a five-step verbal approach designed to help speakers prepare and sharpen their main points before speaking, addressing the common struggle of getting directly to the message.

  • Ep. 387 – Reimagining your next offsite

    This episode of Just Saying - The BRIEF Lab focuses on improving team offsites. It offers six considerations for planning, emphasizing that duration, desired outcome, and agenda are more crucial than just the location for maximum effect.

  • Ep. 386 – The Power of Proactive Advocacy

    This episode discusses the power of proactive advocacy in a professional context. It encourages listeners to perform positive actions for others, suggesting that this may lead to reciprocation and the development of personal advocates.

  • Ep. 385 – It’s better to be interested than interesting

    This episode discusses how being interested in others, rather than trying to be interesting, can make a positive impact. It suggests choosing curiosity and focusing on people around you.

  • Ep. 384 – The Loneliness of Excellence

    This episode discusses how achieving excellence, like that of a Hall of Fame athlete, requires dedicated time alone for practice and preparation, even when working with others.

  • Ep. 383 – Jumpstarting Innovation in a Single Day

    This episode introduces a DIY method for a one-day team innovation event. It emphasizes structured collaboration and individual thinking time to intentionally accelerate the creation of new ideas.

  • Ep. 382 – Pulling a U-turn in a Conversation

    This episode discusses "Pulling a U-turn in a Conversation" from "Just Saying - The BRIEF Lab". The host shares three tactics to redirect conversations that are not progressing.

  • Ep. 381 – Having the meeting end(ing) in mind

    This episode of Just Saying, Ep. 381, focuses on how meeting leaders can ensure meetings end effectively. It offers practical strategies for allocating sufficient time to summarize discussions and assign action items.

  • Ep. 380 – The B.E.S.T. Meeting Method

    This episode introduces the B.E.S.T. Executive Summary Technique, a meeting format developed by the host. Inspired by Amazon's meeting practices, it integrates quiet reading, a visual outline, and a narrative summary to facilitate deeper d…

  • Ep. 379 – Your boss doesn’t have time for you

    This episode of Just Saying - The BRIEF Lab discusses the issue of managers having insufficient time for their extended teams due to increased organizational demands. The host proposes six methods to help employees adjust to this challengi…

  • Ep. 378 – Roles, recommendations, and re-caps

    This episode of Just Saying focuses on three key leadership skills: powerfully framing one's role, convincingly sharing courses of action, and consistently summarizing complexity. Practical advice is offered to improve in these areas.

  • Ep. 377 – You’re speaking dolphin

    This episode discusses how different fields like finance, tech, and science use specialized language. It offers common-sense tips to improve clarity and avoid miscommunication, using a clip from the 1960s show “Flipper” as an example.

  • Ep. 376 – What’s the cost of confusion?

    This episode of Just Saying - The BRIEF Lab, titled 'What’s the cost of confusion?', delves into the financial and operational impact of communication within an organization. It contrasts the benefits of clear communicators with the detrim…

  • Ep. 375 – Defining your communication preference (no more guessing)

    This episode of Just Saying addresses the common leadership challenge of unclear communication. It introduces a straightforward two-step method for leaders to define and convey their specific communication preferences, moving beyond assump…

  • Ep. 374 – BRIEF Team Builder: a new annual subscription service

    This episode introduces the BRIEF Team Builder, a new annual subscription service from BRIEF Lab aimed at enhancing team communication and accountability for predictable, sustainable outcomes.

  • Ep. 373 – What’s your signal-to-noise ratio?

    This episode discusses the concept of a high signal-to-noise ratio, referencing Kevin O'Leary's observations on Steve Jobs and Elon Musk. It offers practical advice on managing distractions to increase focus.

  • Call Back Episode – 209 Tech Timeouts

    This callback episode, originally recorded October 18, 2021, focuses on the challenge of disconnecting in our 24/7 world of constant connectivity and how to find moments to be 'off'.

  • Ep. 372 – You’re better left alone

    This episode revisits a 1980s self-help technique suggesting 30-60 minutes of solitude yields clarity. It explores the difficulty of achieving this in today's environment, especially during VUCA times, referencing Brian Tracy's advice.

  • Ep. 371 – Meeting participants (and potted plants)

    This episode of Just Saying challenges the convention of excluding people from meetings who don't appear to have an immediate role or add direct value, comparing them to potted plants.

  • Ep. 370 – Making key conversations count (the 6 T’s)

    This episode of Just Saying - The BRIEF Lab discusses the 6 T's to help listeners prepare for and improve key conversations, whether they are important or difficult.

  • Ep. 369 – You’re all over the place

    Episode 369 of Just Saying discusses how communicating without a clear purpose or plan is ineffective and harms one's ideas, attention, and reputation. The podcast emphasizes the negative consequences of unfocused communication.

  • Ep. 368 – Sharing crucible stories

    This episode discusses how authentic leaders share personal stories of struggle, failure, and severe challenges. It suggests that sharing these 'crucible stories' allows leaders to connect more deeply with others than through traditional c…

  • Ep. 367 – Becoming a thought leader (not a thoughtless one)

    This episode discusses the qualities and responsibilities required to become a true thought leader, emphasizing experience, knowledge, respect, clear communication, humility, and generosity.

  • Ep. 366 – Working with AI slowly and quietly

    This episode of Just Saying, 'Working with AI Slowly and Quietly,' emphasizes that to truly benefit from AI's rapid advancements, individuals must dedicate time to slow down, learn, and mindfully engage with the technology. The hosts sugge…

  • Ep. 365 – An imperfect guide to generational communication differences

    This episode discusses generational communication differences among Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z, noting perceived superiority but highlighting shared values and commonalities. An overview is provided to stimulate thought on what…

  • Ep. 364 – Botching your day-to-day conversations

    Episode 364 discusses how professionals may overemphasize presentation skills while neglecting everyday conversations, despite the higher frequency of daily interactions like calls and updates.

  • Ep. 363 – Know-it-alls

    This episode of Just Saying - The BRIEF Lab discusses the dual nature of subject matter experts (SMEs) and provides practical advice on how to manage their tendency to overwhelm with information, helping hosts and listeners avoid becoming…

  • Ep. 362 – Challenge: A Quiet Workday (once a month)

    This episode challenges listeners to implement a monthly 'Quiet Workday' dedicated to deep work. It offers recommendations for scheduling a day with significant silence, a specific focus, and an agenda designed for solitary deep dives, aim…

  • Ep. 361 – The Power of the Pause

    This episode of Just Saying discusses the energizing and empowering nature of pausing. The host shares five specific moments where a brief pause of three to five seconds can yield significant power, drawing from personal experience.

  • Ep. 360 – Giving my audience a voice (is this our last season?)

    In this episode of Just Saying, the host contemplates whether the podcast should have another season and is soliciting listener opinions. They also discuss potential format changes to improve content relevance.

  • Ep. 359 – My discovery of Quiet Selling

    This episode introduces "Quiet Selling," a training program focused on enhancing listening skills in sales. The host shares insights on deliberate selling and client engagement, inspired by a sales trainer.

  • Ep. 358 – Why gratitude is so grounding

    This episode of Just Saying discusses how gratitude serves as a powerful grounding force, helping to reduce personal and professional noise. The host shares a list of things they are grateful for this year.

  • Ep. 357 – How I prepare for a podcast

    This episode of Just Saying details the host's preparation process for podcasting, covering insights from eight seasons of hosting and numerous guest appearances to illuminate the production workflow.

  • Ep. 356 – Showing up late and unprepared

    This episode of Just Saying discusses the common issue of showing up late and unprepared. The host offers practical advice on how to be early, quiet, and ready to avoid the negative consequences of tardiness.

  • Ep. 355 – How to end a meeting like you meant it

    This episode of Just Saying - The BRIEF Lab focuses on the importance of ending meetings properly, comparing it to an airplane landing. It offers a list of best practices for meeting owners, leaders, and participants to ensure meetings con…

  • Ep. 354 – Why it’s not all about books

    Host discusses the importance of clarity over book sales, emphasizing preparation, audience feedback, and combating daily noise in communication.

  • Ep. 353 – When your mission changes, why doesn’t your message?

    This episode addresses the common issue of organizations failing to update their messaging in response to evolving missions and external changes. It offers guidance on how to maintain current messaging to ensure strategic alignment.

  • Ep. 352 – Q&A on the book “Quiet Works” (part 3)

    This episode of Just Saying features a Q&A session about the book "Quiet Works," specifically addressing Part Four (Quiet Places and Programs) and Part Five (Quiet Challenges). The discussion covers chapters 14-17 and 21-22.

  • Ep. 351 – Q&A on the Book “Quiet Works” (part 2)

    This episode features a Q&A session focusing on Part Three of the book 'Quiet Works,' covering quiet practices at work in chapters 9-13. The book explores making silence a key part of the workday.

  • Ep. 350 – Q&A on the Book “Quiet Works” (part 1)

    This episode features a Q&A session covering the first two parts of the book “Quiet Works: Make silence the secret ingredient of the workday.” Questions relate to Part One: Our Noisy World Just Gets Noisier and Part Two: Quiet Isn’t What Y…

  • Ep. 349 – Managing Expectations (Two Words When I Saw Plymouth Rock)

    This episode of Just Saying explores managing expectations, using personal anecdotes like seeing Plymouth Rock and a restaurant incident as examples of immediate reactions versus deliberate communication.

  • Ep. 348 – Three questions to improve your next one-on-one

    This episode discusses how to improve work one-on-one conversations, often perceived as stale, by approaching them as pointed, personal discussions with specific questions to make them memorable and impactful.

  • Ep. 347 – Do you do deep work?

    This episode discusses the challenges of deep work due to constant distractions and the negative impact of superficially engaging with information. The host shares insights from three business books to help listeners assess their own deep…

  • Ep. 346 – Defining your most pressing priority (MPP)

    This episode of Just Saying discusses the importance of defining and executing your Most Pressing Priority (MPP). It explores whether we dedicate enough time to critical tasks and connects deliberate preparation with predictable execution.