Have you ever watched one of those shows on HGTV, one where the team of experts comes in to remake and remodel some regular person’s home? There are a million of these, but the one I saw most recently was an episode of “Property Brothers.”   Jonathan and Drew, the aforementioned brothers, were helping a …

“It was uncomfortable, so I stopped.” There are situations in which this is absolutely the right decision. On a date with someone who’s creeping you out? Listen to that discomfort and get out of there. Realize you’ve started a fight with your partner right when other people are coming into the room with you? Put …

The big game is on the line, and it’s come down to two free throws. The basketball player bounces the ball, looks up at the basket. What is going through her head? Is it “I have to make these two shots for my parents who sacrificed everything for me to be able to play this …

The Ignite CSP team has been on the hunt for some specific software recently, and that led us to a recorded webinar that promised to fill us in on the benefits of one potential solution. The format of the webinar was the host interviewing the person whose product it was. We tuned in, hoping this …

It’s natural to be nervous in a high-stakes situation. Our adrenaline goes nuts, the butterflies start flapping, and the next thing you know we’ve got full-on flop sweat (or maybe that’s just me.) Ignite CSP senior coach Vivian Smith talks you through creating relaxed readiness–acknowledging your nerves but staying available to the situation you’re in. …

Many conversations have two jobs—   1.) to accomplish a task, and 2.) to take care of the relationship between the speakers.   We tend to focus, almost exclusively, on one or the other.   If you are talking to someone in order to get your problem solved, you’re focusing on a task. The intention …

This is one of my favorite misleading phrases. It’s rarely followed by a description of something truly simple and uncomplicated, like “pick the socks up off the floor.” No, typically “All I’ve got to do” is the precursor to a general summary of an activity the speaker sees as easy, but that contains multiple stages …

My team and I had a video call this week, and on the screen looking back at us was Felicia, a member of a sales team for a software product we’re considering. Felicia was knowledgable, and she answered our questions and anticipated ones we didn’t know to ask. The product itself seems fine, if maybe …

There are risks in being a great speaker. The standard for what we generally see is so low that we have accepted mediocre-to-poor speakers and presenters as the norm.   What will happen if you raise the bar? What happens when you are excellent?   You’ll stand out. You won’t blend into the background. People …

In theatre, there’s a very important person called the technical director. Her job is to implement and execute the creations of the designers and director—she can recite the inventory backwards and forwards, manages the work crew, and knows exactly how much it will cost to cut that cargo van in half and get it on …