Real Communication

Effective communication through authentic leadership

A rapidly evolving workplace and disruptive technologies have created a growing demand for transparency and authenticity in communication from business leaders. Yet many decision-makers find themselves far behind the curve when it comes to understanding and meeting the evolving expectations of employees and customers.

Real Communication: How to Be You and Lead True reveals how to guide and communicate in a way that is authentic and will help business leaders truly connect and engage with their teams, customers, and coworkers.

• Communicate more effectively

• Improve employee engagement

• Manage organisational changes

• Help teams cope with change

When employees trust their leaders, businesses thrive. In Real Communication you will find everything you need to implement new strategies, instill core values, and cultivate engagement.

The real Ral ix

Really big thanks xi

Introduction xiii

Part I: Why you need to get REAL now 1

1 Decline in trust 5

2 Evolution of expectations 17

3 Rise of jargon 27

4 Addiction to acronyms 43

Part II: How we get Real Engagement 53

5 Communicate concisely 57

6 Share personal stories 69

7 Visualise information 79

8 Deliver your content with impact 93

Part III: How we practise Authentic Leadership 109

9 Use real words 113

10 Deal with what’s real 123

11 Show what’s real to you 137

12 Know what’s real for others 151

Conclusion 161

Are you ready to get REAL? 163

Index 165

Gratitude 173

GABRIELLE DOLAN is a global thought leader on authentic leadership and business storytelling. She is a highly sought after international keynote speaker and trainer, and the founder of Jargon Free Fridays (www.jargonfreefridays.com). She is also the author of five business books including Stories for Work: The Essential Guide to Business Storytelling and Ignite: Real Leadership, Real Talk, Real Results.

'The irrepressible and talented Gabrielle Dolan has done it again. Real Communication is full of wonderful stories and useful tips, all in the service of enabling people wherever they sit to be more effective in getting their message heard and absorbed, and in exercising leadership on behalf of whatever they care deeply about.' —Marty Linsky, Faculty, Harvard Kennedy School

'Having the courage to be you when communicating takes lots of skill and practice and Gabrielle's insights and simple clear approach allows the reader to go on their own learning journey.' —Kate Mason, Group Director, People & Culture, Coca-Cola Amatil

'This book will make you completely rethink how you lead, communicate and behave to be a more inclusive leader and possibly reassess your own values to be successful in the future, professionally and personally.' —Michael Ebeid AM, Group Executive, Enterprise at Telstra

'Real Communication: How to Be You and Lead True provides essential insights for twenty-first century leaders. It's a refreshing – and necessary – view of where leadership is headed.' —Frederique Covington, Senior Vice President Marketing Asia Pacific, VISA

What's happened to real? In a world of jargon, acronyms and distrust, does authenticity in leadership mean anything anymore?

The answer is a resounding YES. As the expectations of customers and employees evolve at a breakneck pace, businesses and organisations are starving for real communication and authentic leadership.

But there's a lot of baggage and distrust to overcome. Real Communication shows you how decades of systematic deceit, jargon, alternative facts and a top-down culture of self-protection have nurtured cynicism in our organisations. With real-life case studies, pointers and guidelines, leadership consultant Gabrielle Dolan shows you how authenticity can earn trust with honest communication, and why it's well worth the effort.

Great leadership demands commitment. Are you ready to get real? Learn how to:

• communicate more effectively
• improve employee engagement
• help your team cope with change
• lead significant organisational transformation
• manage the new generation of employees.

When trust is broken, it is extremely hard to rebuild. Real Communication shows you how to do it, and the payoff is priceless.