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The majority of our communication is unplanned. Matt Abrahams is a lecturer at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business and an expert in spontaneous conversation. Matt is also the author of the book Think Faster, Talk Smarter and host of a podcast by the same name.
In this episode we explore actionable steps to help all communicators increase their effectiveness when speaking on the spot. See the top takeaways below.
Episode Highlights (~1.5 Minutes, Full Episode Linked Above)
Top Takeaways
Research tells us that 85% of people feel nervous in high-stake speaking situations. According to Matt, he thinks the other 15% are lying.
The majority of our communication is unplanned. Matt’s steps to increase our effectiveness to communicate include managing anxiety, skills development (i.e. approach + messaging) and practice.
We all have the ability to achieve communications greatness. One of the most important things we can do to improve our speaking experience is give ourselves permission not to be right.
There are many frameworks we can use to help us determine what we want to say and how we want to say it, including (1) problem - solution - benefit and (2) what - so what - now what.
In Matt’s view, Robin Williams is one of the greatest spontaneous communicators as he was amazing at in the moment responding to not only what was needed, but was also able to capture an emotion in the room and then use it to tell a story in an amazing way.
Resources
Full Lists of Topics Covered
Matt’s introduction to this niche of communications research
Keeping the content fresh new and exciting after over 20 years of research
The status quo of people’s relationship with unplanned communication
Steps to improve spontaneous communication
Practices to managing anxiety
The importance of unlearning and accepting mediocrity
Matt’s view on the spontaneous communication masters
Frameworks to support our delivery and messaging
The Stanford ecosystem and experience
Hope you enjoy the conversation, feel free to share and let me know if anything resonates with you in the comments.
-Adam