presentation given to the American Society for Training and Development, March 20, 2012

1. Being a Communications Therapist
Bryan Rutberg
ASTDps meeting
March 20, 2012
© 2012 AG Consulting Partners

2. A common dilemma
They know it.
They know they know it.
You know they know it.
But you need to help
them tell it to others.
So you need to go
deeper.
You need to become a
Communications
Therapist
© 2012 AG Consulting Partners 1

3. Create. Communicate. Connect.
• Help executives and organizations connect
with their most important audiences
• Sales and Alliance Management, Executive
Communications, Communications
Coaching and Executive Coaching
• Started a new adventure summer 2011
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4. The term, coined
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5. This morning’s goals
• Enjoy. It’s breakfast, not brain surgery.
• Appreciate your role in helping others
communicate.
• Learn how to get the info you need from
clients, bosses, subject-matter experts –
anyone – and help them get it across to
others.
• Play along.
© 2012 AG Consulting Partners 4

6. Build trust
• With your professional standing
• With your personal interest
• In some cases, over time
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7. “How does this affect others?”
Audience
• Who are they?
• What’s the Point B you want?
• What’s the emotion you want?
• What’s the action you want?
• What’s the most effective way to get there?
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8. “What do you mean by that?”
Precision
• 3 Why’s
• “Tell me more about that”
• “What do you mean by that?”
• “Can you give me an example?”
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9. Precision Practice
• Find a partner
• Pick a simple topic like favorite summertime
activity or favorite city to visit
• Tell your partner the noun in a simple
sentence
• Partners asks questions to get more
information
• Don’t spill all the beans at once
• You may be surprised what you learn!
© 2012 AG Consulting Partners 8

10. “Tell me about your feelings”
Emotion
• Share the emotion
• Stories get the point across
• Listeners have to see the story
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11. Emotion Practice
• Pick a partner
• Using no voice, display emotion.
Happy, sad, mad, scared, surprised, disgust
ed, pained, in love, wonder. Partner
guesses the emotion.
• Spiral staircases, CFL bulbs, old-fashioned
“safety razor” – what else can you show?
© 2012 AG Consulting Partners 10

12. “Tell me about your mother”
Motivation
• Go there!
• It’s not really about mothers – in business
it’s about compensation and the results
you’re measured on
© 2012 AG Consulting Partners 11

13. How I prepared for today
Kind of comms Presentation
Event or Comms
Being a Communications Therapist
Name
Audience ASTDps members – training & development professionals
Audience
Open, here to learn. Early – need stimulus!
mood/tone
“Sometimes I get frustrated when I’m trying to help someone because they can’t say what
Point A
I know they know”
“As a Communications Therapist I have tools and knowledge to help get the story out and
Point B
delivered.”
Communications Therapist gets deep information from his/her subject, and uses the
Main message(s)
depth to build better communications (training, 1:1, exec-to-team, etc.)
Supporting Build trust, ask more questions, get to the emotion, understand motivation. Use a
messages framework.
Goals Understand actions and framework for getting to roots, key points
Exercises Deep Questioning, Stories & Emotion, Completing framework document
Call(s) to action Connect with me, follow up
© 2012 AG Consulting Partners 12

14. Communications Therapist
Bryan Rutberg, Communications Practice Lead
ASTDps meeting March 20, 2012
Kind of comms
Event or Comms
Name
Audience
Audience
mood/tone
Point A
Point B
Main message(s)
Supporting
messages
Goals
Exercises
Call(s) to action
bryanr@agconsultingpartners.com |(206) 251-6911 |
© 2012 AG Consulting Partners
www.linkedin.com/in/bryanrutberg| @AGConsComms

15. Please stay in touch
• "Like" the AG Consulting Facebook page
– https://www.facebook.com/pages/agconsultingpartners
• Follow my comms-focused Twitter feed
– http://twitter.com/AGConsComms
• Connect with me on LinkedIn
– http://www.linkedin.com/in/bryanrutberg
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16. © 2012 AG Consulting Partners 15