By John Geraci, CI2 Advisors In today’s noisy world, stories have become our best shot at being heard. We’re all navigating a barrage of messages every day—emails, alerts, social posts, video calls, texts. In the middle of that digital chaos, most communication barely registers. But occasionally, a story cuts through. It lands. It lingers. It moves someone to act. The reality is, not all stories do that. Some stories create...

Most People Listen to Respond—The Best Listen to Understand By David Lynn, CI2 Advisors In today’s fast-paced world, listening has become a lost art. Most people don’t truly listen. They wait. They wait for their turn to talk. They wait to insert their opinion. They wait to correct or improve what someone else is saying. But they aren’t listening to understand—they’re listening to respond. In leadership, in business, and in...

By John Geraci In business, some conversations carry more weight than others. They’re the ones that determine whether an opportunity moves forward, a team gets aligned, a client stays on board, or a key decision gets made. These high-stakes moments require more than a polished deck or perfectly rehearsed pitch. They demand connection—real, human connection that breaks through the noise and creates space for trust, insight, and movement. One of...

By David Lynn In the world of sales and service, we’ve been trained to trust the numbers. We track conversion rates, ticket resolution times, net promoter scores, and average deal size. We measure performance in percentages, progress in dashboards, and potential in forecasts. And while all of that is necessary—it’s not enough. Because data might explain behavior, but it rarely changes it. If your goal is to deepen a relationship,...

By John Geraci In today’s fast-moving, hyper-connected world, most people are drowning in content. Emails. Ads. Notifications. DMs. Meetings. AI-generated everything. We’re all moving a mile a minute, bombarded from every direction—and constantly deciding what to pay attention to and what to ignore. So if your story isn’t landing, it’s not because storytelling doesn’t work.It’s because you’re telling the wrong kind of story. Let’s fix that—fast. Why Stories Matter More...

Feature requests are a constant companion of most product managers. It seems like no matter where you go, someone has an idea — AKA a feature request — for your product. Some people hail these feature requests, proclaiming them the silver bullet of product evolution. Other product professionals view these constant requests as the bane of their existence. Which is it? The answer lies in the beholder. How you handle...

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In the business world, sales teams and customer support teams work hand-in-hand to create better customer experiences and more room for revenue growth. Together, they form a dynamic partnership that fosters collaboration and encourages new ideas. However, too often, sales and customer service teams operate in silos, missing valuable opportunities to align their goals and efforts. The result? Unfulfilled customer expectations and reduced customer retention rates. One common issue companies...

The Impact Of Transformational Listening According to a study from the University Of California, poor listening skills negatively impact 70% of all employees. This means frustrating misunderstandings, workplace errors, and eroded trust within teams. While developing active listening skills is a great start to combat this, it’s not enough to truly change how your business operates and impacts people. Because there are so many communication channels today, communication is more...

Poor communication is one of the most damaging elements to a business. According to a study by Project.io, at least 66% of people say they worked with a different business due to poor communication.  When you think about it, this type of reaction makes sense. Think back to the last time you had a conversation with someone and didn’t feel heard. You probably felt frustrated, exhausted, or even hurt by...