What We Do

For me, the 3 biggest discoveries were:

1. Watching myself on the videotapes and realizing that I could improve my speaking presence.
2. Learning to present the Foundation for Results and its impact on the people and the company.
3. Listening to the managers and understanding that they are committed to leading change and improving the company’s results."

1. "Being vulnerable is more a strength than a weakness;
2. The importance of networking;
3. To not be afraid of criticism and to not be afraid of what you will find in introspection. We can change if we want to.”

1. “A much deeper understanding of myself.
2. We are the product of our past and our life events shape us as we are today.
3. Those things in others we find most disturbing are really a reflection of ourselves.

“Since taking the class my team has been able to address difficult conversations openly.”

“We need to celebrate successes more publicly. And then in those celebrations cite the incidents when generous listening, putting the past in the past, or declaring breakdowns helped move that project along. The good news is I feel this is already part of our culture now, however offering those real examples serves to further reinforce the concept to others as well.”

“I think the hardest thing for me, perhaps for many of us, is taking time to step back from the hard-charging, pressure- driven day to breathe deep and focus on communications and relationship best practices. I really like the idea of having desktop reminders, or quick reference sheets that we carry with us, to keep the techniques front of mind rather than back of mind.”

“I was honestly really excited when we first had this training. I took notes and put them in all my personal tools in order to guide me on being "better" - staying focused, accountable, listening etc. And absolutely none of the guidelines were ever adopted by our team’s leadership. It was really disheartening because I was so excited by the program, but now it seems like just another corporate "checkmark" training program. It's a real shame, because it could have been amazing.”

"I feel there is still work to be done culturally to foster an environment where generous listening is encouraged at all times. On calls and in meetings, it is very common for 95% of the individuals participating to be working on other matters, texting, etc. I understand it's the world we live in, but I do believe it reduces overall productivity since we are not able to give our full attention to the matter at hand.”

“I have been part of a project team which has not been very structured throughout the early part of the project. Following the recent 'Leadership' training with other teams; I have seen a very positive turn around in the way the project is being managed and an improvement in communication to all team members on current status and future steps. The path is much clearer!”

“Conversations are more open and direct.”

“I’ve recently taken this training, and am working to actively declare breakdowns rather than RE-actively declaring breakdowns.” “Today we had a post-implementation project meeting to discuss learning’s. I utilized the tools provided in training to ensure that I leveraged that concept when I communicated my learning’s.”

“I was in a meeting with another team who was being asked to do something that really just wasn't possible given the construct of the project in question. We were going mad trying to find a way to turn water into wine, when one person present simply stated, "I declare a breakdown". It was so empowering as it gave us the freedom to question what was really being asked of us.”

“I am having better conversations with our partners and customers since having the training. The conversations are more focused and productive. ?I have been able to improve processes especially in my previous role by declaring breakdowns and working through issues. I also encourage my peers and my team to voice background conversations and be open and honest.”

“When I listened to the videos on my own time, I had time to reflect on my own behavior and how I can change.“

“The larger the project group, and the more remote the attendees, the more risk of getting derailed by background noise. We've used the learning’s from this training more than once to get the group re-focused and back on track.”

“As a team we forced two individuals to openly address some background conversations and harbored issues toward one another. After some honest yet difficult and uncomfortable dialogue to get to the root of the issues, they were able to identify root causes and speak with the individuals on ways to resolve and begin to build the trust back. After a few more meetings with the two individuals and the manager, we were able to get things back on track and begin the process of building true trust in getting buy-in that both would actively work towards those positive results.”

“I think it has improved communication in our group where within our own department we sometimes didn't properly communicate but now we have established meetings and processes to better handle communication.” “In working with a new business partner, we quickly realized we tackled and solved problems differently. Instead of letting the frustration build, we scheduled a 1:1 meeting to work through the communication breakdown. It made the entire process work so much easier.”

“It was really eye opening to see how much I didn't fully listen when people talked. I started paying more attention to all the details vs. just getting the gist of the conversation. This helped in my work life and personal life.”

“As a team, overall we improved our communication skills. Being a generous listener -- not only myself but also all of my team, we now intend to be a good listeners, we pay more attention and avoid multi-taking when talk to each other during our team meetings or group conversations. We provide active feedback on questions and share comments on topics raised by an individual team member. Overall our communication skills improved and the new skills we learned benefited us to build a stronger team. We also use the skills we learned when we talk to our clients. It is a good practice and will help us to continue to improve our overall customer service quality to our external customers all over the world.”

“Our team declared a breakdown with another team and Leslie mediated a session for all of us. The session helped clear background conversations and some of us are collaborating much better now. I also use putting the past in the past and facts versus inferences daily. I try not to apply prior perceptions to current situations. It requires focus, but it has really helped me adjust to a new management structure and focus on the traits that will improve our working relationship. I also use the partnership action cycle daily, it seems so simple, but its nice to call out that you are responsible for identifying and asking for what you need to do a job.”