The Headline

The headline to the story is a high level summary of what one can expect.   It is meant to communicate, tantalize and intrigue.

Yesterday I had the opportunity to think about my personal headlines.  I was driving to the eastside of greater Seattle to have coffee with a valued friend.  This was an individual who I had not seen in too-long-of-a-time.    My intent was to reconnect and communicate importance.   Meanwhile, there I was. . stuck in some suburban traffic hellhole that was frustrating beyond belief.   My base instinct, upon greeting my friend was to vent (in what now will be  known as an Anthony Scaramucci-style rant).   "This (expletive deleted) traffic just SUCKS!"

I did not do this (because I thought about it);    that opening line, that headline would not have set the stage for all of the good that I wanted to have happen.  My headline instead was, "It is so good to see you - I have really missed you."

Often I think we face similar situations;   in our minds our purpose and intent is positive and clear - but often we end up blurting out a knee-jerk reaction or our emotion of the moment.   We have to ask ourselves - are we setting up positive reactions with our audience?

We know the place we are coming from. . .but our audience does not.   That first point of contact, that headline, is critical in setting expectations.    A random comment about what we feel at the moment often doesn't create positive anticipation;  a genuine statement about our intent and our primary purpose not only creates framework, but contributes to the good intent of the conversation.

People who are really good at speech making know this dynamic.  Strong marketers know this.   You only have a few seconds at the beginning to truly engage the people with whom you are conversing.

What are your headlines?

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My book "Courageous Questions, Confident Leaders" is available on Amazon Kindle.