The Real Cost of Poor Communication

Dear {{ first name | Legend}},

Do you know that people fear speaking in public more than death?

This phenomenon is rooted in evolutionary psychology, where social rejection—potential during public speaking, was once akin to a death sentence. About 75% of the population experiences this anxiety.

75% 😱

The truth is that today, you’re probably not going to die if you give a bad presentation. You’re not even going to be embarrassed for long.

People forget… very quickly.

But there is actually something much worse that happens.

Missed opportunities you didn’t even know about.

The deal doesn’t move forward.
The promotion goes to someone else.
The idea you championed stays in limbo.

I think that’s the real cost of poor communication. I shudder to think about all the times I was in front of a group of people and I wasted that opportunity to influence thinking, feelings, and actions.

No worries though, we’re going to learn from a Hall of Fame speaker on how to present well and grab all these opportunities.

I recently had Patricia Fripp on the Influence Anyone podcast. She is one of the most sought-after communication coaches in the world, a Hall of Fame speaker, and the first female president of the National Speakers Association. She’s coached executives at IBM, Cisco, and NASA on how to turn ideas into influence.

If you want to amp up the way you speak, read on!

Maybe you say, Howie, I don’t give big presentations or keynote speeches, and I never want to give a TED talk.

Sure, you can avoid all the big stages… but Patricia reminds us of this:

This is not just about big stages.

Every meeting.
Every pitch.
Every update.
Every conversation where something is at stake.

Which means this isn’t about “being a good speaker.”

This is about:

Because every time you speak…something is on the line whether you know it or not.

Instead of thinking about presenting as a performance, think of it as an opportunity to change how someone feels, how someone thinks, and how someone acts.

In other words, it’s not about you, it’s about them. How can you leave them in a better place after you’ve spoken?

So the real goal is not “Don’t mess up”, it’s “Help them change.”

Are you ready for world-class tips directly from a Hall of Fame speaker?

Here is the playbook 👇🏽

5 frameworks to turn everyday communication into influence (number 5 has an example from Patricia that got her on 60 Minutes! 🔥)

👉 Hook attention instantly

Stack 2–4 of these in your first 30 seconds:

Then step forward → state your premise

“A client is choosing between three experts.

All credible. All experienced. All saying roughly the same thing.

So what do they do? They compare price.

Not because they want to. Because they don’t see a meaningful difference.

How often are you being put in that position?

Every expert here can escape commoditization… here’s how.”

Attention is captured through pattern interruption, then sustained through emotional relevance and personal significance. Who doesn’t want to escape being a commodity?

👉 Structure any talk so it’s instantly clear

Define your message in one line:

Every [audience] can [result] → here’s how: 1, 2, 3

Then build everything around it.

“Every expert here can turn their service into the obvious choice…
here’s how: niche, POV, influence system.”

Reducing cognitive load increases comprehension, which increases the likelihood of retention and action.

👉 Make people feel understood immediately

“Some of you are thinking—
‘We’ve tried this before. Why would this work now?’

Fair question.

Here’s what’s different…”

When people feel understood, psychological resistance drops and trust increases—making them more receptive to new ideas.

👉 Increase influence with one language shift

Rewrite your sentences:

Instead of:
“We’d like to schedule a follow-up…”

Say:
“Would it make sense to you to schedule a quick follow-up so you can see how this applies to your team?”

People don’t care about your message.
They care about what’s in it for them.

Self-relevance activates deeper cognitive processing, increasing attention, and memory.

👉 Make your ideas stick and spread

Turn ideas into assets:

🔥 Patricia used this line during an interview and it got her a clip on 60 Minutes!

Or:

If it’s not interesting and they can’t repeat it… it doesn’t spread.

Information that is simple, distinctive, and easy to recall is more likely to be remembered, shared, and acted upon.

The worst outcome for communicating poorly isn’t failure.
It’s being ignored, and losing the opportunities you never knew was possible.

And now you know how to fix that (which are you going to try?)

If you like this issue about influencing through communication, check out:

Change behavior, change lives 🤘🏽

Howie Chan

Creator of Influence Anyone

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P.S. If you haven’t already, go take the free assessment and find out your influence style profile!

Want to stop being invisible and start being chosen?

In this episode, I sit down with Hall of Fame speaker and communication expert Patricia Fripp to break down what actually separates people who talk… from people who influence.

In this conversation we unpack:

• The two words almost every speaker says… that instantly makes them sound like everyone else
• The counterintuitive reason talking more makes people trust you less
• The tiny phrasing change that turns resistance into agreement mid-conversation

If you’ve ever felt like your ideas are solid but not landing… or your conversations aren’t turning into opportunities…

This episode will change how you think about communication and how to use it to move people.

🎧 Listen to the full episode on Apple, Spotify, or the web, or wherever you get your podcasts.