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Once we know something, we find it hard to imagine what it was like not to know it.Chip Heath
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Anger prepares us to fight and fear prepares us to flee.Chip Heath
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Stephen Covey, in his book The 8th Habit, decribes a poll of 23, 000 employees drawn from a number of companies and industries. He reports the poll's findings: * Only 37 percent said they have a clear understanding of what their organization is trying to achieve and why * Only one in five was enthusiastic about their team's and their organization's goals * Only one in five said they had a clear "line of sight" between their tasks and their team's and organization's goals * Only 15 percent felt that their organization fully enables them to execute key goals * Only 20 percent fully trusted the organization they work for Then, Covey superimposes a very human metaphor over the statistics. He says, "If, say, a soccer team had these same scores, only 4 of the 11 players on the field would know which goal is theirs. Only 2 of the 11 would care. Only 2 of the 11 would know what position they play and know exactly what they are supposed to do. And all but 2 players would, in some way, be competing against their own team members rather than the opponent.Chip Heath
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To make our communications more effective, we need to shift our thinking from "What information do I need to convey?" to "What questions do I want my audience to ask?Chip Heath
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The first problem of communication is getting people's attention.Chip Heath
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If I already intuitively "get" what you're trying to tell me, why should I obsess about remembering it? The danger, of course, is that what sounds like common sense often isn't.... It's your job, as a communicator, to expose the parts of your message that are uncommon sense.(p.72)Chip Heath
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People tend to overuse any idea or concept that delivers an emotional kick.Chip Heath
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An old advertising maxim says you've got to spell out the benefit of the benefit. In other words, people don't buy quarter-inch drill bits. They buy quarter-inch holes so they can hang their children's pictures.Chip Heath
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The most basic way to get someone's attention is this: Break a pattern.Chip Heath