Apple Tree CommunicationBecause of my passion for leadership I like to imagine that I'm an expert in communication but I'm reminded occasionally (ok, everyday) that I still have a few things to learn. I recently got an email from John, a former colleague of mine at Office Max. He and his family had taken a trip to an apple orchard over the weekend and along with the apples, they discovered a secret to effectively connecting with people. Around the outside of the orchard they walked around in the first few rows of trees and found that all the "easy" apples were already gone. The easy response? -- "There's nothing to do here...lets give up and go home." A little further in they found a different scenario -- "Yeah! Finally some appl......hey! wait! These apples are nasty, bird picked and bruised -- If we want to use THESE apples we'll have to deal with a lot of mess for just a little....let's give up and go home." But then my friend remembered some reading they had done about the best apples being found in the middle of an orchard where most people don't want to take the time and effort to go. They REALLY wanted some fresh apple pie so they went even farther in....so far in that by the time they stopped they were huffing and puffing and.......... "Wow! Look at all of these perfect apples! In describing his trip to the orchard, John unwittingly revealed the secret to deep communication with people. The easy conversations around the edges of life have already taken place. Leadership demands that I take the time to keep going. Take the time to go a little further with your spouse or your children and you'll begin to find those topics that reveal some bruising and have been picked at a bit.....Don't give up! Keep working until you find the center of your relationship. Find out where the good conversational fruit can be found and make regular attempts to go there! It will require some hard work , but the rewards of real communication with your family are well worth the effort. Watcha Thinkin ?  P.S. If you're intrigued by this family leadership blog, why not subscribe? A daily update is available via  RSS reader or E-mail. If you'd prefer a monthly summary of the updates just subscribe to our newsletter.
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