What holds most people back from being effective communicators? Here's the reason 👇. Most people communicate with one question in mind: "How does this affect me?" That's the default filter we all start with. It's human nature. But it's also what holds many leaders back from being truly influential. Because great communication isn't about you. It's about your audience. Here's a simple model shared by my guest Russ Peterson Jr.. to remember before every presentation, meeting, or conversation: A — Audience → Who are they? What do they need? M — Message→ What's most important for them to hear? Y — You→ You, What do you need to do as the speaker (which is important only after the first two) The AMY Model is a powerful reframe that helps you lead, speak, and communicate with more impact. In this episode of Unstuck, I sit down with Russ Peterson Jr., co-founder of iSpeak and an award-winning communication coach who has trained leaders around the world to influence through powerful storytelling. We dive into the story of Zahir, a Director of Global Supply at an international tech company who's brilliant with data but struggles to move hearts in meetings. His message is clear, but his team feels disconnected. Together, we explore: 🎯 How to move from information to inspiration 🎯 Why the AMY Model transforms how leaders communicate and influence 🎯 How to lead with empathy, putting your audience first If you've ever struggled to make your message stick, this episode will show you how the right filter transforms your communication and your leadership. 🔔 Follow Jay Abbasi for more on leadership, influence, and communication. 🎧 Full episode in comments. 

Office Guest Alert: A Week of “Paw-sitive Presence”! 🐾 This week, my nephew dog joined me for work, and let’s just say, he’s been quite the executive co-coach! In true 3D Authentic Presence™ fashion, I found myself applying my own framework to his unexpected influence: 1️⃣ DEFINE: Every leader needs intentional space to reset. My new furry coworker reminded me that stillness is not idleness - it’s preparation for clarity. 2️⃣ DISCOVER: Between calls and coaching sessions, I noticed how his calm energy shifted mine. He wasn’t trying to do anything — just be. That simple presence created a ripple of peace through my workspace.  3️⃣ DECIDE: I’m choosing to carry that same grounded presence into every conversation, meeting, and moment - even after he returns home. Because authentic leadership isn’t about control; it’s about connection. Sometimes, leadership lessons arrive on four paws and a wagging tail. 🐶 Who else has a “furry co-coach” helping them stay centered this week? __ 📕 Learn more about 3D Authentic Presence™ in my book PRESENCE →  https://lnkd.in/dqxQ4Z5J  __

“I love their work, but I have no idea when they’re actually working.” That’s what Lisa told me. She was a marketing director whose team was crushing every goal, delivering high-quality work, keeping clients happy. But they kept sending her final deliverables at 2:00 AM. And it was driving her crazy. Her assumption? They must be procrastinating all day and scrambling at the last minute. So I asked her: “Are you happy with the work quality?” “Yes, it’s excellent.” “Are they meeting deadlines?” “Always.” “Then what’s the actual problem?” She paused. “Well…I just don’t know WHEN they’re working.” There it is. The hybrid leadership anxiety that’s keeping so many leaders up at night. Here’s what we did: We threw out all the activity-based metrics she was tracking and replaced them with three SMART KPIs that actually mattered: ✅ Quality Score (client satisfaction + revision rounds) ✅ Deadline Performance (on-time delivery percentage) ✅ Team Collaboration (responsiveness during core hours) Six months later? Her anxiety about “when” people were working was completely gone. Team productivity went up. Retention hit 100%. Why? Because when you measure outcomes instead of activities, people can do their best work during their most productive hours. The lesson: Stop trying to control HOW work gets done. Start focusing on WHAT gets accomplished. This week’s episode dives deep into three systems that eliminate the guesswork in hybrid leadership: • The Trust Scorecard (measure trust with remote team members) • SMART KPIs for Hybrid Teams (what actually matters vs. busy work) • Performance Management Without Proximity (spot patterns before they become problems) If last week’s episode on hybrid leadership resonated with you, this one gives you the practical systems to actually implement it. What’s your biggest hybrid leadership challenge right now? Let’s talk about it in the comments. https://lnkd.in/gUcHh5qJ

Great leaders don’t give answers. They tell stories that make you feel something. The best leaders I’ve ever worked with had one thing in common: They didn’t lecture. They narrated. They didn’t push. They pulled. They made you feel the truth before they explained it. Because facts inform, but stories move. That’s what the best of them understand. According to master storyteller and screenwriter Robert McKee (via HBR’s Storytelling That Moves People), people are not logical creatures. We’re emotional. We don't act because of PowerPoint slides — we act because something inside us shifted. The best leaders know how to cause that shift. The Real Problem: You want your team to follow your strategy. But they don’t trust it. You explain. You reason. You list out all the benefits. Nothing changes. Why? Because logic leads to thinking. Story leads to believing. The Antagonist: 📉 Boring, data-drenched leadership communication. It kills motivation. It ignores emotion. It assumes your team is a spreadsheet — not a group of humans with hopes, fears, and values. So how do you actually lead with story? Inspired by HBR’s How to Tell a Great Story (Carolyn O’Hara), here’s a simple cheat sheet: 🔥 The Leadership Storytelling Cheat Sheet 1. Know Your Purpose → Are you trying to inspire action, explain change, or build trust? → Pick ONE clear goal. Don’t try to do it all. 2. Use a Real Conflict → Stories without tension don’t stick. → What was hard? What almost broke you? That’s what makes the lesson land. 3. Focus on Emotion First, Message Second → Start with the human emotion — fear, hope, pride, doubt. → Then bring in the message. 4. Show, Don’t Tell → “I worked hard” is boring. → “I was rejected by 8 clients in a row — and still showed up the next day” is a story. 5. End with a Clear Takeaway → What’s the point? → End with clarity, not cleverness. 6. Make It Short → 2 minutes. Tops. → Attention is earned, not assumed. If you want people to act — to follow you into uncertainty, to try something new, to take responsibility — they need to see themselves in your story. Because a good story is never about the hero. It’s about the transformation. And when done well? That transformation becomes possible for everyone listening. Powerful stories don’t just explain your leadership. They prove it — without you having to say a word. If you want to lead better, learn to narrate better. PS: When was the last time a leader’s story actually moved you? 👇

Do you ever feel like your leadership communications are lost in translation? This is actually more common in small businesses than you might think - even assuming you are speaking the same language. In my experience, there are many reasons why this happens, but one comes up most often. ⁉️ Incorrect Assumptions Leaders, especially owners and CEOs, often move quickly and typically focus at a more strategic or company overview level. 👉 They go broad...think "the forest." Teams typically focus on one particular area or initiative. 👉 They go deep...think "the trees." When you leave communication up to interpretation, you increase the chance of creating confusion and conflict. 👉 Like when talking about how beautiful the forest is...green and lush, while not taking into consideration that there is a section of trees that are struggling to survive. If this miscommunication happens frequently, you might: ❌ Lose speed to market or momentum toward your goals ❌ Lose valuable employees ❌ Increase stress on yourself and your team This doesn't mean that leaders should be involved in every detail or tell each person exactly what to do and how to do it. Nor does it mean slowing down and tailoring communication on an individual level. No one has time for either of these things, especially when they don't solve the issue. This is where a Fractional Chief of Staff or strategic execution support can help. How? I'm glad you asked. ✅ Strategic partner who creates alignment with accountability ✅ Operational mindset with focus on clarity and efficiency ✅ Expert communication skills that connect everyone Said another way... 👉 I see the forest AND the trees. 👇 Hear more about how solving communication challenges can accelerate your company toward a lucrative exit. 🎧 Link to full episode in the comments. Jo Stapleton John Canniffe Exeo Advisors

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Miscommunication can be more detrimental to your business, than you might think. You've heard it before... "My tree is sick, and I need help to fix it," says the Employee. "I'm looking at the forest, not one specific tree," says the Leader. The challenge lies in that they are both correct when it comes to what they should be focusing on, BUT... 👉 Neither feels understood or supported with what they're trying to accomplish. So what do you do? Speak louder and longer to try to get the other person to understand your perspective? (Pro Tip: This will not work and just causes more frustration.) Consider a Fractional Chief of Staff - someone who sees the forest AND the trees and seamlessly communicates between the two. Check out this clip for more on why this is so important. 🎧 Link to full episode in the comments. Interested to learn more about our Fractional Chief of Staff services and how they can help bridge that communication gap and get your team all rowing in the same direction? 👇 DM us or drop us a comment and we'll set up time to chat.

Most hybrid leaders are flying blind. They know they need to stop micromanaging. They know they should focus on outcomes instead of activities. But they have no idea what that actually looks like on a Tuesday morning when they can't see half their team. So they default back to proximity-based management. And wonder why their best people keep quitting. Here's what I've learned from coaching leaders through this transition: You don't need better people. You need better systems. Three systems, specifically: ▫️ One to measure trust with people you rarely see in person ▫️ One to track what actually matters instead of busy work ▫️ One to spot performance patterns before they become problems And here's the key: These three systems work together. You can't measure performance without trust. You can't build trust without clear expectations. You can't set clear expectations without knowing what actually matters. When you get all three working together? You can lead a hybrid team with complete confidence instead of constant anxiety. I break down all three systems in this week's episode - the exact frameworks, the specific tools, and the real examples of leaders who've implemented them. Because knowing you need to change and knowing HOW to change are two completely different things. https://lnkd.in/ggDwrCKT

Most CEOs I know barely have time to think. Their days are packed with decisions, meetings, and constant problem-solving. But without space to pause and reflect, it’s hard to see whether you — or your systems — are truly effective. That’s why my recent work with coaching clients has focused on one key shift: moving from emotional reactivity to strategic influence. Right now, I’m coaching four leaders whose organizations range from 20 to 35,000 employees in four different industries — and it’s striking how similar their challenges are: ▶︎ Stuck in the same patterns—having the same conversations with the same people about the same problems. ▶︎ Triggered by familiar personalities or dynamics that throw them off their game. ▶︎ Struggling to remove emotions from tough decisions or conversations. ▶︎ Feeling hopeless that real change is even possible. ▶︎ Haunted by “ghost systems” — old ways of working that no longer fit but still shape how people behave. A good coach can build in systems for you to slow down the noise and look at what’s actually happening: - What behaviors keep triggering emotional reactions? - What decisions are made on autopilot? - What outdated systems or “ghost processes” are quietly running the show? Once you see the pattern, you can rebuild the structure around it using tools that make strategy tangible. A couple of tools I have been implementing with 1 on 1 clients the past couple of months: ✅ Redesigned meetings that clarify priorities and decisions ✅ 1:1 frameworks that build ownership instead of dependency ✅ Feedback tools that lower defensiveness and increase learning ✅ Political mapping to navigate influence with intention ✅ Role restructuring to align accountability and impact Because mindset creates patterns—but tools break them and that’s how lasting change happens. If you’d benefit from a weekly or bi-weekly pause from the chaos to become more strategic and intentional—book a quick chemistry call to explore whether we’re a good fit for the final 2.5 months of the year. (link in comments).

Leadership conversations often focus on values: mission statements, guiding principles, walls plastered with words like 'integrity' or 'excellence'. But values without a foundation are gestures. The more important code is the one you quietly run behind the scenes: your personal leadership operating system. That’s what determines whether your commitments survive the friction of real work. In this week’s Thinking With Mitch Joel Podcast, Mitch reconnects with Robert Glazer, author of The Compass Within, to explore how many leaders inherit their inner software (from parents, bosses, culture, algorithms) and mistake those defaults for their own design. Glazer’s parable asks leaders to pause: do we know the code we’re actually running? If our actions ever crash under pressure, it may be because the system we never wrote is failing us. For executives, this distinction is structural (not merely aspirational). Leaders with congruence make faster, cleaner decisions because they know their non-negotiables. They don’t parade values, those values leak out of their instincts. The rest of us flinch at sudden choice points or speak softly in tension because our internal OS seeks consensus over integrity. When you design your OS consciously, you resilience-test your leadership before chaos does. In an era of perpetual novelty, that inner coherence becomes a strategic advantage. ThinkersOne exists for these moments of internal alignment. Our personalized video experiences bring leading Thinkers into team spaces to help leaders reboot - shifting from inherited software to self-authored systems. Listen to Mitch’s full conversation with Robert Glazer (link in comments) and devour this question: If all the external layers were gone, what code remains and is it still yours? Book these Thinkers to deepen the conversation at your next meeting: Angela Chee – Owning voice and presence in every space. Dorie Clark – Building long-term identity in a shifting business landscape. Henna Pryor, CSP – Reclaiming assertive communication in pressured environments.