How to Build Trust and Connection No Matter the Distance

Topics: Communication, Personal Growth, Professional Growth,

“Being a good leader today means not only being aware of other people’s signals and cues but also mastering this new digital body language that didn’t exist twenty years ago.”

Erica Dhawan

From me: I’m so grateful for book recommendations. I may never have stumbled upon this gem if it wasn’t for my workplace. My company, as most do, invites speakers to share out our annual, company-wide, kick-off meetings. The last two years, they’ve gone further by purchasing the guest speaker’s book for all employees. And, in today’s world, how appropriate to take some focused time learning, sharpening, and refining our skills of digital communication. As we’ve all been asked to adjust to increased reliance on digital communication, did we ever stop and think that maybe written communication could maybe, just possibly, not be interpreted as originally intended?

I didn’t.

This book elevated my writing, Slack messages, emails, and Zoom calls from the moment I opened the front cover. Erica invites the reader into her childhood and her curiosity of reading body languages from her time in elementary school all the way to coaching global companies on their digital body language. There are practical examples of emails and text message conversations gone completely awry. I laughed at them probably because they could have been examples of my own writing… Definitely no need for anecdotes here, we probably all have our own copies of these examples in our email archive.

For you: Do you need a book to help elevate your communication style? Do you communicate every day using a piece of technology to other humans? Consider picking this one up. It brought a heightened awareness to text messages, emoji usage, and even something so simple as, “k” as a response in Slack. Phew, that section blew me away. 🤯 

This is a simple, practical read. Erica provides great resources for the reader and their team to not just let this be a one and done, but to help them–you, me, and our teams–grow in our digital communication. 

Interest piqued? Grab your copy and come back to share your personal take-aways.