Conversation is not new, conversation has been at the heart of society since...well forever.Yes, the internet has taken the conversation from a local to a global base but conversation has always been powerful.
Why I firmly believe that as leaders,as advocates of our brands we should never be fearful of the conversation is that the richness of an idea comes from the conversation. I think that we develop as leaders by feeding the conversation.
I was very lucky that at home Dad loved nothing more than having a discussion, of explaining, of talking to me about the world. He didn't prevent me from having a different opinion...he would talk about the different points of view and let me make up my own mind.
The lesson for me was that because he didn't force his opinion on me, I trusted his opinion. He trusted me to listen to both sides of an argument and form my own judgment on what I believed in....that was back in the 70's and 80's. The irony is that experience from 30 years ago, is allowing me to love social media and love "engaging" with all the generations now. So I was trying to think about how Dad did feed the conversation
- He trusted in my ability to understand the arguments
- He was open to discussion
- He was not afraid of me holding a different viewpoint, he used to say "That's fine, and always remember a leader must learn to respect there are two viewpoints and find a way of working together"
- He saw my views change as I matured and never once said "I told you so"
- He reveled in the fact that the world was made up of unique people with unique thoughts...he never feared it, he loved it.
- He was very clear if it wasn't a discussion - like what time I needed to be in from a party. He would say "the time is non negotiable". He also made the consequences clear if I broke the non negotiable contract. Then he said the choice was mine...
Conversations can be emotional, but they should never be feared as part of business. Silence is a much more worrying noise!
