By Hannah Baker
Dear Reader,
Imagine you're in a brainstorming session, brimming with enthusiasm and ideas for a new project. Excitement fills the air as you share your vision with your team and stakeholders.
However, as you dive deeper into the discussion, unexpected resistance emerges, derailing the flow of creativity and stifling collaboration.
Tensions rise, misunderstandings abound, and suddenly, your project hits a roadblock. Sound familiar?
If so, you're not alone. Many of us have experienced the frustration of navigating communication barriers that hinder our creative aspirations and jeopardize project deadlines and goals.
Google's Project Aristotle looked at what makes a team successful. The most critical factor was psychological safety. In a psychologically safe environment, team members feel safe to take risks, be vulnerable, and share their ideas without fear of ridicule or rejection.
Understanding communication styles empowers designers to create a safe, inclusive environment where individuals express themselves openly.
But where to begin? Let's explore four distinct communication styles, each examining two key factors: directness and indirectness and supportive versus controlling communication styles.
By recognizing and leveraging your communication style while also adapting to the styles of others, you can foster productive collaboration, build strong relationships, and drive successful outcomes for your projects.
Ready to move beyond just reading about communication styles and get some hands-on practice on adapting to different styles?
↓ Take advantage of our upcoming FREE workshop on February 27th ↓
Join us for an interactive session where you will also learn practical tips to maximize participation and collaboration!
In this FREE one-hour workshop, we will delve into communication styles, equipping participants to navigate challenges like silent rooms and creating an environment where every voice is valued.
Reserve Your Spot Today (FREE) |
COURSE: Defining UX Strategy |
Until next week!
The Fountain Institute is an independent online school that teaches advanced UX & product skills.
Are you stuck in reactive mode? by Jeff Humble Dear Reader, Some designers spend their whole careers reacting to other people's moves. As a design manager, I remember being in this position. I had to brace myself every Monday morning for some radical change in company direction. We never knew what the new agenda would be, but we knew that it would throw our work into chaos. Sometimes, all it took was for the founder to read a single article to change the company agenda. When a competitor...
Why Your Portfolio Isn’t Working (and How to Fix It) By Hannah Baker Dear Reader, Let’s talk about a harsh truth: Your UX portfolio might be the least important thing in your job search. Yep, I said it. You spent hours making sure it showcases your best work. You structured your case studies just right. You ensured your problem statements, research insights, and solutions flowed together. And yet… hiring managers are ghosting you like a bad Hinge date. Well, the problem isn’t your...
Chasing Competitors Instead of User Needs by Jeff Humble Dear Reader, Have you ever had a CEO who was overly obsessed with beating the competition? I know I have. You may not have realized exactly how this can be toxic. So, I'd like to help you out with two case studies. Here is a tale of two companies and how they handled the competition. The first took a company-first approach while the second took a user-first approach. It goes like this... Company-First: The Rise & Fall of Google+ Google+...