Today we welcome Katie McCleary and Jennifer Edwards, authors of Bridge the Gap: Breakthrough Communication Tools to Transform Work Relationships From Challenging to Collaborative. They urge us to use “simplexity” and the psychology of human connection to promote effective communication.
What is Bridging the Gap?
Effective communication is crucial for success in the workplace, and when communication breaks down, it can lead to misunderstandings, conflicts, and decreased productivity. Bridging the gap means finding ways to improve communication and eliminating barriers that prevent employees from effectively understanding and sharing information with one another.
Bridging the gap can be done by creating new communication channels, improving existing ones, encouraging open and transparent communication, and promoting collaboration and teamwork. This means creating opportunities for employees to communicate with each other effectively and developing systems and processes to promote effective communication. Additionally, creating a culture of mutual respect and encouraging active listening, understanding, and valuing different perspectives can help to bridge communication gaps.
Every single person we engage with has a lived experience different than ours. When we know their story, we can’t deny them their dignity.
Jennifer Edwards
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Listen Notes, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. You can watch the interview on YouTube below.
Enjoy!
In This Episode, Katie McCleary, Jennifer Edwards, and I Discuss How You Bridge the Gap
More people find it difficult to properly understand and respect one another as individuals in today’s polarized environment. As a result, many fail to recognize the value of forging connections, showing curiosity, and paying attention to others. Come learn how to harness the social psychology of human connection and curiosity to foster meaningful communication and cooperation at work and at home with Fortune 500 leadership coaches and authors Jennifer Edwards and Katie McCleary.
Katie and Jennifer examine how your biology and biography shape and hone your behavior in connections-challenging situations. They offer a trustworthy and repeatable framework to improve open communication by focusing on individual accountability and awareness, meta-cognition, and curiosity. Additionally, they provide light on the inner workings of the mind and the human brain and how these affect how you interact, talk to people and work together.
According to Jennifer and Katie, the way you present yourself—from your enthusiasm and attentiveness to your language and listening—shapes important encounters and results. You may learn how to express yourself clearly to a variety of people at all levels and from all backgrounds while navigating any emotion or circumstance. The authors provide examples to show how these abilities might create the conditions for more satisfying interactions and outcomes.
Listen to learn more!
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More From My Interview With Katie McCleary and Jennifer Edwards on How to Bridge the Gap
I asked Katie and Jennifer how you use curiosity as a tool, and an intentional filter for how to listen, speak and engage in relationships.
Katie McCleary explains, “Curiosity is being in wonder with another person and asking open-ended questions. And that allows the brain to be free, not feel squeezed, to be open from the pressure of having to give a performative answer. And in the book, we talk a lot about the questions that opened the brain up as opposed to the questions that closed the brain. Some of the most powerful questions open with tell me about, what about share with me. And the best question of all is silence.
Jennifer Edwards adds, “I think silence’s value is about honoring space. I think we all need those moments to be silent and to process a little bit more. I think we’ve gotten caught up. It’s a game of leapfrog, often, I say something, you say something, I say something, you say something, and someone else buts in to say something. The conversation moves. We’re just moving too quickly. And so when we show up in a space where we’re comfortable with silence. We are energetically indicating to that other person that I’m okay to be with you.
Thanks, Katie McCleary and Jennifer Edwards!
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Resources From The Show With Katie McCleary and Jennifer Edwards
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How to contact Katie McCleary and Jennifer Edwards
- Website: https://howtobridgethegap.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katie-mccleary-a3a7339
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/CuriousKatieMc
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-michele-edwards
- Instagram: @bridgethegap_book
My solo episode on what it means to be a person of courage: https://passionstruck.com/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-person-of-courage/
My interview with Seth Godin on why we need systems to change to save the planet and address climate change: https://passionstruck.com/seth-godin-we-need-systems-change-save-planet/.
Want to hear my best interviews from 2022? Check out episode 233 on intentional greatness and episode 234 on intentional behavior change.
My interview with NYU Stern School of Business Professor Scott Galloway on Why America is Adrift: https://passionstruck.com/scott-galloway-america-is-adrift/
My solo episode on why micro choices matter: https://passionstruck.com/why-your-micro-choices-determine-your-life/
About Today’s Guests, Katie McCleary and Jennifer Edwards
Katie McCleary, MFA, is a socially driven entrepreneur and storyteller who trains leaders, creatives, and changemakers to launch big ideas that uplift communities and people. She is the founder of 916 Ink, a nonprofit that has transformed over 4,500 vulnerable youth into confident authors who know the power of story and their voices. She hosts “The Drive” podcast on NPR’s CapRadio with the American Leadership Forum-MV. Katie is a professor of leadership in Pacific University’s Masters in Nonprofit Leadership program. She lives in Fair Oaks, California on a hobby farm with her children, partner, and a menagerie of feathered and furry creatures.
Jennifer Edwards, MA, is a business and leadership advisor working with Fortune 500 companies and boards, equipping them to perform and collaborate optimally when pressure and stress hit. Her clients include top leaders at global companies, including Edward Jones, First American Financial, Microsoft, American Pacific Mortgage, and WeWork. She is a partner at Winning Streak Ventures, an early-stage venture capital fund that invests in disruptive technology companies. She lives in Granite Bay, California, and enjoys a vibrant life of family, grandkids, the gospel, golf, and building communities with great humans.
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John R. Miles is a serial entrepreneur and the CEO and founder of Passion Struck. This full-service media company helps people live intentionally by creating best-in-class educational and entertainment content. John is also a prolific public speaker, venture capitalist, and author named to the ComputerWorld Top 100 IT Leaders.
John is the host of the PassionStruckPodcast. The show focused on exploring the mindset and philosophy of the world’s most inspiring people to learn their lessons to living intentionally. Passion Struck aspires to speak to the humanity of people in a way that makes them want to live better, be better and impact.