Effective communication is at the center of any successful interaction, whether at work or in our personal lives. We know it requires practicing active listening and being transparent, assertive, and firm when speaking. Still, most of us get it wrong, even those who reached reasonable success in business. Today's guest, Dr. Rick Brandon, has a lot to teach us about communication, active listening done the right way, and how to help our teams transcend into their best version.Dr. Rick Brandon, Ph.D., is the Founder and President of Brandon Partners, a globally respected firm that offers workshops on interpersonal and political savvy. Dr. Rick co-authored the Wall Street Journal bestseller "Survival of the Savvy" and recently published "Straight Talk," the book that sums up the workshop Dr. Rick has been presenting and teaching worldwide for the past 20 years.In this episode, Dr. Rick explains how to acquire the Straight Talk mindset and how it can transform and upgrade our communication skills. We navigate his early passion for communication, his past as an educator, and the turning points that defined his path.Dr. Rick also shares the fundamentals of the GAIN commitment, the massive cost of faulty communications, the misconceptions about active listening, and much more.Tune in to Episode 336 to discover how to fully embrace the power of next-level communication.Some Questions I Ask: Could you share your background and the turning points that helped you get to where you are today? (4:36) Could you tell us about your book, and why you decided to write it? (7:34) Can you explain how to implement the Straight Talk mindset to communicate? (21:03)In This Episode, You Will Learn: Dr. Rick talks about why he was a communicator before he was born (5:41) Why the soft skills are actually hard skills (10:38) The misconceptions about active listening (14:44) Dr. Rick goes through the GAIN commitment (21:43) Dr. Rick explains how to proceed when someone simply doesn't want to talk (26:58)Resources: Brandon Partners websiteBook: Dr. Rick Brandon - Straight TalkBook: Dr. Rick Brandon - Survival of the SavvyConnect with Dr. Rick: LinkedIn  Becoming Your Best Resources:Becoming Your Best Website Becoming Your Best University Website Becoming Your Best Library Email: support@becomingyourbest.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.