Sounding board
We have all done it before. We get this great idea and are so eager to share it. But just as we articulate it to someone else, it can unexpectedly seem as though we were slipped a stupid pill. The good news is that you can fix stupid, so long as you fix it before it gets out where it can do damage.
I appreciate that this happens to all capable, intelligent people. It can even be endearingly funny when you do it with friends. I've had a few such moments myself. But sometimes what you have to say is critical and you can't let the cat out of the bag using a nearby associate for a test run?
What you need is a sounding board to assess your effectiveness conveying your critical idea. Go ahead, bounce your idea off me. I am an experienced confidential sounding board. There is no risk in flubbing the test run. If it does not go over as well as you had hoped, you can then work out a better way of getting your critical idea across.
As a professional listener I appreciate specialized language even though I am not necessarily familiar with your field. I can still spot unworkable communication assumptions that can easily plague boundaries between social groups or department levels.
Albert Einstein once said, "We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” So especially when we are launching out in a new and different way that is a good time to use a professional sounding board.
I am available for 20 to 25 minute sessions to listen to your ideas and, if you want it, returning constructive feedback.
You can put it in writing, use an audio or video recording, speak to me face to face, on the phone or even use Skype. You chose the method that most closely resembles the situation when it counts. Being a professional sounding board obviously requires that I keep your ideas and identifying information strictly confidential.
"We don't see things as they are, we see them as we are." ~ Anaïs Nin
