The Top Blogs of 2013

As we wrap up another year here at Wayne O’Neill & Associates, we consider the conversations we’ve had, how others have impacted us, our successes and our failures. Reflecting upon our practice allows for us to grow as a business, and we look back at all that we’ve done, including our blog.

The most popular blogs of the year

1. What senior executives wish that you knew

2. Building your business by working with different people

3. Employee retention: Why good employees leave

4. The power of face-to-face communication

5. The value of disruptive dialog to grow your business

What’s trending

While looking back on our popular blogs of this year, we stumbled upon a trend. What was being read most follows a common thread throughout: engagement. Whether it’s your employees, making a presentation, or starting a conversation.

The whole process of engaging with people is about slowing down a bit and breathing. With presentations, how can you be candid? With employees, it’s about maintaining trust. What’s the important thing about face-to-face communication? Yes, eye contact is important. But it’s also about whether or not you seem prepared to the other person.

So here’s the bottom line…

Do more than engage

The ability to engage with counterintuitive framing adds memorability to the engagement process. It’s not about being charming, it’s about being in the presence of someone who you can tell is listening to you, engaging with you, and making you think. It’s like a good comedian: he makes you laugh and he makes you think to yourself, “Yeah, that really is true.”

I see this type of engagement as a tipping point with every client. Once the client gets that, the conversations with their clients change. And with their team, too. There’s this phenomenon-you can’t sell externally unless you can sell internally. Internally is about engagement. You can’t lead unless you’re engaged. It’s a funny thing, once your team is connecting better, you start connecting better with your clients. And that’s counterintuitive.