John R. Miles

or your leadership isn't landing the way it should. It might not be about what you're saying. It might be where you're saying it from. So let's get into it. Thank you for choosing PassionStruck and choosing me to be your host and guide on your journey to creating an intentional life. Now, let that journey begin. You felt it, even if you couldn't name it. You're mid-conversation.

or your leadership isn't landing the way it should. It might not be about what you're saying. It might be where you're saying it from. So let's get into it. Thank you for choosing PassionStruck and choosing me to be your host and guide on your journey to creating an intentional life. Now, let that journey begin. You felt it, even if you couldn't name it. You're mid-conversation.

Words are flowing. Smiles are exchanged. And yet, something feels hollow. They're saying the right things. Maybe you are too. But underneath it all, it feels like you're both performing. Like two actors hitting their marks. without ever actually meeting. Why? Because connection doesn't begin with what you say. It begins with who you are when you say it. And that's where we start today.

Words are flowing. Smiles are exchanged. And yet, something feels hollow. They're saying the right things. Maybe you are too. But underneath it all, it feels like you're both performing. Like two actors hitting their marks. without ever actually meeting. Why? Because connection doesn't begin with what you say. It begins with who you are when you say it. And that's where we start today.

Words are flowing. Smiles are exchanged. And yet, something feels hollow. They're saying the right things. Maybe you are too. But underneath it all, it feels like you're both performing. Like two actors hitting their marks. without ever actually meeting. Why? Because connection doesn't begin with what you say. It begins with who you are when you say it. And that's where we start today.

The core truth, real connection begins within. Before you can truly connect with someone else, you have to be connected to yourself, not just in thought, but in feeling, emotionally, energetically. This is the part we skip. We chase scripts, techniques, frameworks, hoping they'll help us speak more clearly, listen more actively, influence more powerfully, but without inner awareness.

The core truth, real connection begins within. Before you can truly connect with someone else, you have to be connected to yourself, not just in thought, but in feeling, emotionally, energetically. This is the part we skip. We chase scripts, techniques, frameworks, hoping they'll help us speak more clearly, listen more actively, influence more powerfully, but without inner awareness.

The core truth, real connection begins within. Before you can truly connect with someone else, you have to be connected to yourself, not just in thought, but in feeling, emotionally, energetically. This is the part we skip. We chase scripts, techniques, frameworks, hoping they'll help us speak more clearly, listen more actively, influence more powerfully, but without inner awareness.

All of it is just choreography. It's not the words that create connection. It's the presence behind them. This is something I talked about recently in episode 563. with Allison Wood Brooks, a professor at Harvard Business School. Allison studies conversations for a living, and what she said stuck with me.

All of it is just choreography. It's not the words that create connection. It's the presence behind them. This is something I talked about recently in episode 563. with Allison Wood Brooks, a professor at Harvard Business School. Allison studies conversations for a living, and what she said stuck with me.

All of it is just choreography. It's not the words that create connection. It's the presence behind them. This is something I talked about recently in episode 563. with Allison Wood Brooks, a professor at Harvard Business School. Allison studies conversations for a living, and what she said stuck with me.

When you're really listening to someone, she told me, you're also holding a mirror to yourself. That line hit me hard because I felt that mirror, and maybe you have too. Someone shares a story, and it's like hearing your own, not just their words. but your memories, your insecurities, your longing to be seen. That's the secret most communication strategies miss.

When you're really listening to someone, she told me, you're also holding a mirror to yourself. That line hit me hard because I felt that mirror, and maybe you have too. Someone shares a story, and it's like hearing your own, not just their words. but your memories, your insecurities, your longing to be seen. That's the secret most communication strategies miss.

When you're really listening to someone, she told me, you're also holding a mirror to yourself. That line hit me hard because I felt that mirror, and maybe you have too. Someone shares a story, and it's like hearing your own, not just their words. but your memories, your insecurities, your longing to be seen. That's the secret most communication strategies miss.

What deepens connection isn't just expression, it's reflection. And that reflection begins on the inside. Let me take you to one of the most uncomfortable learning curves of my adult life, improv. When I first started, I thought I was a pretty good communicator. I went to Toastmasters. I had been on many stages as a keynote speaker. And I knew how to speak on my feet. I had presence.

What deepens connection isn't just expression, it's reflection. And that reflection begins on the inside. Let me take you to one of the most uncomfortable learning curves of my adult life, improv. When I first started, I thought I was a pretty good communicator. I went to Toastmasters. I had been on many stages as a keynote speaker. And I knew how to speak on my feet. I had presence.

What deepens connection isn't just expression, it's reflection. And that reflection begins on the inside. Let me take you to one of the most uncomfortable learning curves of my adult life, improv. When I first started, I thought I was a pretty good communicator. I went to Toastmasters. I had been on many stages as a keynote speaker. And I knew how to speak on my feet. I had presence.

I could lead a room. So how hard could it be to jump into a sketch and respond in real time? Turns out, it's really hard. Because improv didn't just expose how quick I was. It exposed how much I was performing. Instead of playing the scene, I was trying to manage how I looked in the scene. I wasn't listening to my partner. I was scanning the audience. I wasn't reacting. I was calculating.

I could lead a room. So how hard could it be to jump into a sketch and respond in real time? Turns out, it's really hard. Because improv didn't just expose how quick I was. It exposed how much I was performing. Instead of playing the scene, I was trying to manage how I looked in the scene. I wasn't listening to my partner. I was scanning the audience. I wasn't reacting. I was calculating.

I could lead a room. So how hard could it be to jump into a sketch and respond in real time? Turns out, it's really hard. Because improv didn't just expose how quick I was. It exposed how much I was performing. Instead of playing the scene, I was trying to manage how I looked in the scene. I wasn't listening to my partner. I was scanning the audience. I wasn't reacting. I was calculating.