There’s a difference between broadcasting and communicating change.

And there’s a time and place for both.

Asynchronous options are great for flexible engagement, busy environments and being an accessible knowledge base.

Though when it comes brain-friendly communication, where there’s far more likelihood of understanding, and priming for successful change – the key is around ACTIVE communication 🔑

And remember that “active communication”, is a two/multi-way street (everyone being active collaborators of change vs. passive passengers) – for example:

→ Communicator, use the power of spaced repetition (revisit key points).
→ Recipient, practice active recall (take notes, paraphrase, discuss).
→ Both, ask open-ended questions and encourage clarification.

From a neuroscience lens, active communication helps with:

🧠 Active participation (talking, not just listening) strengthens memory pathways, leading to better encoding and consolidation of info.

🧠 Two-way dialogue challenges and mitigates confirmation bias.

🧠 Addressing concerns and anxieties creates a more receptive environment for processing new information.

🧠 Feeling heard gives people a motivation boost and contributing to ideas makes people more likely to own outcomes.

🧠 Mirror neurons fire in the brain when we observe and listen to others. Two-way conversations help activate this system, fostering empathy and understanding between sender and receiver.

So, as you can see, active communication goes beyond simply transmitting information. It helps create a neurological environment that promotes emotional regulation, motivation, empathy, and memory consolidation – all crucial elements for successful change adaptation.

But everyone is so busy! I get it – time is scarce, and we don’t want to add to distraction overload.

There are so many ways to do this, without adding load.
→ It can be done in person or virtually.
→ By collaboratively working out loud.
→ By going micro over monologue.
→ You can leverage existing routines.
→ You can coach and support local leaders to have active conversations about the change.

Community: How do you balance active vs. passive communications?

#BrainsOnChange