The Jeff Beckham Weblog

A critical aspect for any leader is communication. If the head of your business, school, family, etc., is a lousy communicator, you’re likely suffering the consequences. Moreover, if you’re a leader and a lousy communicator, you need to get help quick, because you’re not going to be the leader for long.

This is illustrated in pointed fashion in The Economist’s June 26th issue, whose UK commentary tears into Prime Minister Gordon Brown for his “Bush-esque malapropisms (Nelson Mandela free “in our lunch time”) and weird pronunciations (“Dial-eye Lama”).”

Certainly, folks in the US are familiar with dealing with a political leader whose oratorical skills are lacking. But once you get past the public speaking follies, there’s a core problem underneath: communication style has never been more important in defining yourself to others. You’re always selling yourself, and it’s important to present your best case.

It’s easy to see the broad strokes — the branding and advertising of businesses, for example, but it also comes down to the details and to the individual interactions. Customers can be turned off by a single bad encounter with a service representative or salesperson, each of whom is acting on the company’s behalf.

Pay attention to communication — it’s all you have.