Can you tell me about your product or company in nine words or less? No? Then odds are, your audience can't either.  YOU need to be clear before you can communicate to anyone else.

Get all the key people in the room and welcome the debate!  If you build the message map as a team, you will own it as a team and you will USE it as a team.  The more consistently you can share your message, the more likely it will be retained.

If you're on a journey, you need a map.  And if you're climbing to the top, take a guide.

Hope it's a Clear Day!
Melissa

What is it about a song that takes you back to another time and place? Melodies send us messages that mean something different to each of us. At times I miss the teenager summers that contained a road ahead paved with possibilities, but there was always a part of me that understood the ephemeral nature of those moments. Every moment is fleeting.  I savored them at the time. And words, movies, friends, songs, they call all transport me back.  Funny, the happy memories are the ones that seem to be the first to arrive when I remember.

Communication can be so powerful, so lasting.  When I talk to people about what they want to communicate, I try to help them understand that what they communicate will last.  I can't remember what my friends were talking about how they said it or the name of a boy I danced with, but I can remember what it felt like to be there.  

Maya Angelou said it best, "People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did. But people will never forget how you made them feel."

So if you are transparent, you are clear, you are intentional, you will leave those with whom you communicate feeling trusted; and that will make all the difference.

Tomorrow is my birthday.  Some people love 'em and some people hate 'em. I always loved my birthday, and then I grew up. Why did this happen? Where did the magic go?  I realized that as my expectations grew, the ability of others to read my mind did not.

But I have cracked the code to ensuring a great birthday: effective communication.

It's simple, yet effective:

• ask for what you want
• be okay if you don't get it
• plan for yourself
• invite them in, but let others off the hook for your accountabilities
• lower your expectations and they will always be exceeded

These rules can be applied universally:  To a project team team, a boss, a spouse.  Because it's actually just about being clear.  When you are clear the overall anxiety of a group goes down.  And the only way to communicate clearly is to be clear yourself.  I know what I want, I know how to get it, I am thrilled when others work with me, but I'm also okay if they are unable.

So I hope you all have a great June 2 and thanks for celebrating with me wherever you are!

So to answer the first question, yes, Stony Hill Communications still in business and going strong!  Words are my business and business is good.

That leads me to the point of this blog post.  I love words.  They are like music to me. I love to put them together in melodies and make symphonies of communication. Words are powerful. As much as they can heal, they can also harm.  Never use words as weapons because once you send them out into the stratosphere, you can never take them back.

And that is my advice today:  Choose your words carefully.  Treat them with respect.  How often do you hear, "I didn't mean that," or "that was not my intent." I watch politicians, celebrities and CEOs try to put the proverbial toothpaste back in the tube, because they didn't prepare, get clear and choose the right words at the right time.  

This type of regret can be avoided with thoughtfulness and practice. Learn to take a beat and breathe the proper breath required to appropriately honor your words before you utter them. They can be your greatest gift or your sharpest knife.

Thank you for reading my words. What will you do differently next time you choose one?

We have successfully survived our first month of Stony Hill Communications being in business! 

It's been an amazing first four weeks. So many people have rallied to support me in this adventure:  some who dared me to dream about doing this for myself and my family, others who support and mentor me, and still others who helped me actually get the work done.  And the best part yet: the new clients who are interested in taking advantage of what I can offer them.

The best part of launching this business has been the opportunity to work with so many people from the entire span of my career.  I can't wait to see what's next.

So far, so great...

Welcome to Stony Hill Communications! It has been an incredible journey to get here.  The tagline reads, "The strongest climbers take a guide."  If you have a communications challenge, be brave enough to ask for help. Your best guide knows the terrain, what will work and what has failed in the past. It takes a lot of courage to climb the tough peaks and even more to ask for help doing it.  That's why the strongest climbers take a guide (I might not be able to climb a mountain, but I can help you over a stony hill :)

This is my next step in living the life I was meant to live.  My purpose is to help people improve their lives through healthcare communications. I have had the privilege of working with so many talented people and so many amazing companies.  I hope this is another chapter in those professional relationships.  

Look around, read about me, and perhaps we will find a way of daring greatly together.