An honest assessment

I’ve always been someone that I feel struggled with communication. I mumble, get stumped easily, let my emotions dictate my choice of words. Improving my ability to communicate has always been a focus of mine. Maybe I need to start listening from the beginning but I really don’t know what the hype is about. I’ve tried really hard to actually extract some value from this podcast but it’s difficult.

The host Matt is pretty good, he enunciates very well but to the point he sounds like a robot. For some reason he doesn’t use contractions and sounds like he’s reading off of notes. However the topics are good and his questions are good.

Since these guys are master communicators, they’re very good at giving answers that sound good but don’t hold weight. These conversations are very academic and in theory seem to be very useful but the episode ends and I find I haven’t gained any practical benefit.

Take for example season 4 episode 73. Matt asks Allison Wood Brooks to give tips to make small taco more smoothly. A very good question. Dr. Brooks talks about why small talk is important buy subsequently provide zero tips. This example is emblematic of the entire podcast.

The guests are very successful academics, and it seems like they only communicate with people of similar socioeconomic backgrounds. Maybe it’s not meant to be more, but when the episode ends and I arrive to work I find myself not having learned anything I could use myself.