Rob Biesenbach 
It’s human nature. With a big holiday approaching, you want to clean off your desk, clear out your inbox, attend to all those undone to-dos and leave the office with a clean slate and clear conscience. Of course you don’t always think about the poor chumps downstream whose inboxes are now overflowing with your detritus. … Read more
This is not a partisan blog, I swear. But when it comes to lessons in how not to communicate, the current crop of GOP presidential candidates is the gift that keeps on giving. First there was Mitt Romney and his unique comedy stylings. Then Michele Bachmann and her little grammar problem. And now we have … Read more
I’ve never been a fan of small talk. As the name suggests, it’s decidedly unambitious. Now I don’t need to always be engaging in deep-meaning philosophy, but I do like something a little more meaningful than, “How about that weather?” Of course, small talk isn’t really about the talk itself. It’s really an attempt to … Read more
In my writing classes at the Second City Training Center, we were assigned to come in each week with a 5-to-7-page sketch to present for the class and instructor’s dissection. (That was every week for nearly a year-and-a-half, by the way.) One day the instructor had us take the first two pages of our sketches … Read more
Some might say that the very least of Michele Bachmann’s problems in her run for president is her command of the English language and rules of grammar. To that, grammar purists the world over say “nay.” Or possibly “pish.” I was alerted to this fundraising letter by the people at the political blog Balloon Juice. … Read more
When I started writing the book, I thought about crowdsourcing it. There are sites where you can put up a chapter at a time, invite comment, ask questions and start debate. I quickly realized that that’s never been the way I write and decided to just do it the traditional way. But I’m learning so … Read more
As I’ve said, I feel a ton of pressure to practice what I preach in my presentations by defying the conventions of tired old PowerPoint templates and creating something really exciting and interesting visually. I learned a lot in the process about finding good images on the Internet, and here are some tips that can … Read more
Listening is not a one-way process. It’s not just about hearing. Listening often requires you to dig so you really understand what’s being said. I was reminded of this in the webinar Friday. Which went great, though the Q&A portion was a little difficult to manage. Normally in a live situation, an audience member asks … Read more
Tomorrow I conduct my first webinar. I’ve attended them before but never starred in one. Yesterday was the final dress rehearsal, and while we’ve managed to master the technology (this particular platform is new to the hosts, too, so we’ve been learning together), it’s still an odd and disconcerting experience. I’m looking forward to advances … Read more
When you think about Hemingway’s writing style, certain things come to mind. Spartan prose, free of excess modifiers. Short, choppy sentences. A distinct masculine bent. For me, Hemingway is about honesty. One idea that has influenced my writing more than any other is this one from Papa himself: “All you have to do is write … Read more