211. Small Screens, Strong Signals: Mastering Modern Communication

In the age of virtual communication, here’s how to ensure your messages convey what you mean.

Texts. Emails. Slacks. Zooms. We’re communicating in more ways than ever, but Andrew Brodsky has a word of warning: Your virtual communication might be sending messages you’re not aware of.

Brodsky is the author of PING: The Secrets of Successful Virtual Communication. And as a professor of management at the University of Texas McCombs School of Business, he researches the impact of technology on workplace communication. “In virtual communication, there's often missing information,” he says. “As recipients of it, we're searching to fill in the gaps. The problem [is] that the recipient who's making these guesses is often guessing incorrectly.” As his research reveals, variables like typos, the time you schedule a meeting, and even your choice of email signature affect how your messages are received — and how you’re perceived.

In this episode of Think Fast, Talk Smart, host Matt Abrahams and Brodsky explore his PING framework (perspective-taking, initiative, nonverbal awareness, and goals) for mastering digital communication. From understanding when to choose email over a phone call to navigating cameras-on versus cameras-off meetings, he offers practical strategies for ensuring your virtual messages communicate exactly what you intend.

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Episode Reference Links:

• Andrew Brodsky
• Andrew’s Book: Ping
• Ep.31 Quick Thinks: How to Shine Online and Excel at Virtual Communication
• Ep.53 Step Up and Stand Out: How to Create the Right Environment for Communication
  

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Chapters:

• (00:00) - Introduction
• (02:51) - What Is Virtual Communication?
• (03:37) - Choosing the Right Channel for Your Goal
• (06:22) - The Ping Framework: Secrets to Virtual Communication
• (10:18) - Understanding Communication Richness
• (13:20) - Nonverbals in Virtual Communication
• (17:04) - The Final Three Question
• (25:24) - Conclusion

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