How to communicate effectively is the big takeaway that David Rohlander, author of the just released The CEO Code: Create a Great Company and Inspire People to Greatness With Practical Advice from an Experienced Executive, wants to get from a book that he essentially spent a lifetime of experience learning in order to create. Effective communication takes more than talent. It requires trust, respect, understanding, empathy, and resolution. It is an art. Many elements are under the broad umbrella we call communication. How a leader needs to communicate with his or her people is our focus. Communication is by de"nition a two-way process, a form of conversation or dialogue. Popular opinion has a tendency to think communication is mostly about talking and writing, or what we might call “broadcasting.” !is is a very limiting perspective. Broadcast brings to mind monikers like: !e Great Communicator or !e Consummate Speaker, and individuals such as Franklin D. Roosevelt, Ronald Reagan, or Martin Luther King. Half or more of the communication equation is the “receiving” of information. Being able to read or understand what others are trying to say or relate takes e9ort. We need to connect with people on a personal basis. Standing on a podium or using a teleprompter or microphone does not help develop relationships or dialogue.