If you’ve ever taken one of my classes, you’ve heard me talk about the “ju ju bucket.” To me, the ju ju bucket illustrates the power of communication. When we get up each morning, we start with a certain amount of ju ju, or gas in our tank. As we interact with people and projects throughout the day, we either get more ju ju, giving us positive energy, or we lose ju ju, making it difficult to function at an optimal level. We can be grumpy and take our sour mood out on others.
Here’s an example. In my role as a litigator, I often have to give clients bad news. No matter how well I handle these situations, I lose some ju ju in the process. On really challenging days, I lose a lot of ju ju. I can carry these bad vibes with me throughout my day, passing my bad ju ju onto others, or I can choose to communicate differently. I can be proactive by remembering that, on the other side of every conversation, is another human being. How I treat that person affects my ju ju as well as theirs.
Communication is a powerful tool. How will you use it today?
