5. Meet “recovering social misfit” & communication coach Craig Gustafson

Sep 14

Craig is an amazing person! He spent most of his life in the navy and travelled the world. But only when he retired from the military and worked in corporate America, he realised he was different. It turns out Craig is on the Autism spectrum with Aspergers and this is the reason why reading facial expressions and other communication cues do not come naturally to him. But he realised that communication and interactions between people is so important that he started learning and applying the science of human interactions and communication. Today he is in the process of launching his own business of helping young people and people with Aspergers to learn how to communicate better. In today’s time this is even more important as we start loosing the in person connection due the increasing use of social media and social distancing. We can all learn from Craig and his message of having a face to face conversation with people around you and start to truly listen and engaging.

TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:

Everyone can learn to communicate better. It is a skill and like any other, can be taught and learned.
Every person deserves to be able to communicate well.
Be kind to everyone, especially to the people who are not your favourites!
When you improve your communication skills, your relationships and hence your quality of life will improve, too.
Society wants to conform us to a system. If you don’t conform, you are ostracised.
You can be friends with someone without agreeing on everything.
The most important thing when communicating is to be able to read the other person’s emotion and being empathic. It is important to understand the meaning and the context something was said in, not just the words.
Knowledge isn’t the same as understanding.
The more connected we become, the less personal our interactions become.
Put your phones down and have a conversation with the people you are with.
Our mind is set up to keep you safe not to make you happy. We often make decisions based on fear.
Journaling helps you to communicate with yourself. Listening to yourself is confronting.
Discovering and overcoming your own limiting believes is key. You are the only one standing in your own way.
Be careful how you speak to yourself! Speak to yourself only like you speak with other people.
Everyone wants to be seen, it is our human need.
Be aware of what you say and how you say it. Make it fun! Smile when you pick up the phone!
There is only one race: the human race!
Your ability to do good is greater than you realise. Together we can make a real big impact!