Mastering Communication with Grace Gavin

Guest: Grace Gavin

Host: Dr. Allen Lycka

Podcast: How to Live a Fantastic Life

Introduction: Dr. Allen Lycka welcomes communication expert and co-founder of Know Honesty, Grace Gavin, to discuss the power of open and honest communication in leadership. Grace shares her journey from growing up on a dairy farm to becoming an executive assistant and eventually co-founding a company dedicated to transforming workplace communication.

Grace Gavin’s Journey to Know Honesty: Grace’s path to becoming a communication expert began in a family business, where she observed communication challenges firsthand. Later, working with leadership teams, she realized that even top executives struggled with communication. This insight led her to develop a structured approach to fostering open and honest communication in organizations.

The Power of Open and Honest Communication: Grace explains that honesty alone is not enough; communication must also be met with openness. Without an open listener, honesty has no impact. She describes how organizations struggle when employees build walls, shutting down dialogue and preventing collaboration. By identifying these walls, leaders can foster better relationships and more effective teamwork.

What to Do When Communication Fails: Dr. Lycka and Grace discuss strategies for breaking through communication barriers. Grace introduces the concept of ‘the wall,’ which blocks people from truly listening. She encourages leaders to identify their own walls and work through them. The key is curiosity—seeking to understand rather than shutting down conversations.

Common Communication Divides in Organizations: Grace outlines two primary divides:

1. Fake You – Projecting a false image, pretending to have everything figured out, or downplaying accomplishments.
2. The Wall – The instinct to dismiss differing opinions instead of engaging in meaningful dialogue. By addressing these divides, leaders can create cultures of trust, reducing turnover and improving workplace satisfaction.

The Impact of Poor Communication in Healthcare: Dr. Lycka shares his experience in the medical field, where doctors often struggle to communicate with patients. He emphasizes the importance of involving patients in their treatment plans. Grace adds that trust in professionals, particularly doctors, has declined, making communication more critical than ever. Entrepreneurs and business leaders, she notes, now rank among the most trusted professionals.

Team Dynamics and Communication: Both Dr. Lycka and Grace stress the importance of recognizing individual strengths within a team. Leaders must identify who excels in communication, planning, writing, or other skills and leverage these strengths for success. Grace urges organizations to embrace collaboration rather than operating in silos.

The Lasting Effects of COVID-19 on Communication: Grace reflects on how the pandemic intensified fear of others, leading to lasting communication breakdowns. She argues that while distancing measures were necessary, society never fully addressed how to rebuild trust. Organizations must now take intentional steps to restore strong communication and collaboration.

BIO:

Grace Gavin is an open and honest expert, helping leaders simplify their communication and eliminate the divides that exist within organizations. As co-founder of Know Honesty, she guides people towards becoming masterful communicators day in and day out. Having experienced the transformative power of openness and honesty, Grace is on a mission to help others create that same freedom in their own lives.

Social Media:

https://knowhonesty.com/assessment/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/grace-gavin/