In executive coaching, you hear a lot of singular techniques — one framework, one mindset, one magic fix that’s supposed to solve everything. In reality, even the best techniques only work when they adapt to the terrain. The central lesson is simple: knowing not just what to do, but when and why to do it. It’s the difference between approach and technique, strategy and tactic. When I run in the mountains, I shorten my stride whether I’m going uphill or downhill, but for entirely different reasons.
Is Conversation Dead?
My teens refuse to talk on a phone. They tell me it’s uncomfortable and weird. I fear that face-to-face communication is being replaced with technology. My son would rather send a message via Snap Chat than use his voice to talk with someone. My kids ask me what to say when they are forced to use a phone to speak with another person. Is this generation developing “phone phobia”? Watching teens ask someone out or break up with someone by texting is an easy way out of an awkward or uncomfortable conversation. This easy way out is not preparing our youth for a work environment where a lot of difficult discussions happen face-to-face.
Our kids will need to develop the ability to talk on the phone. The workplace still uses phones to conduct business. This seems like such a basic skill, but it is a skill that a whole generation is lacking. Talking on the phone is one way of presenting yourself to others. I hope that teens will put down their cell phones and talk to one another using their voices and stop typing out their thoughts using their fingers.
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The Terrain Informs the Technique
In executive coaching, you hear a lot of singular techniques — one framework, one mindset, one magic fix that’s supposed to solve everything. In reality, even the best techniques only work when they adapt to the terrain. The central lesson is simple: knowing not just what to do, but when and why to do it. It’s the difference between approach and technique, strategy and tactic. When I run in the mountains, I shorten my stride whether I’m going uphill or downhill, but for entirely different reasons.
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