Born April 23rd 1564, William Shakespeare wrote some of the most famous plays in history: Hamlet; Macbeth; Romeo and Juliet. His lyrical, evocative style is still appreciated around the world, despite using a vocabulary unfamiliar to many audiences. The less-lyrical vocabulary of emergency services is often burdened by acronyms and jargon. For insiders, jargon and acronyms can increase speed and comprehension. For guests and new people, they can alienate and make full participation a challenge. To reduce barriers when writing: use everyday language when possible; explain words and acronyms in the text; and include glossaries. When speaking, empower audiences to question unfamiliar terms, and list them at the front of the room. Help people move along the preparedness continuum by ensuring they can follow along.

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April 25th, 2011 | Tags: CARD, communication, community, emergency preparedness, Preparedness | Category: 2011, STAT | Leave a comment

For many people, the mere mention of disasters and catastrophes triggers immediate mental and/or emotional resistance. To give your preparedness, planning, or response projects a chance to be heard with fully open hearts and minds, consider presenting them with non-disaster contexts and themes.

One of the most valuable non-disaster themes of all is communication! No matter what project you are promoting, remember to: Lead first with all the communication pieces and their benefits, thread important communication tips throughout, share successful communication stories, and have people share with each other their communication strengths and limitations.

Done right, your audience will have far greater appreciation of the importance of communication in successful preparedness and response efforts, and they will leave stronger in their ability to communicate –which is an immediate benefit to your preparedness and response capacity!

Tip: Walk the talk! Demonstrate your personal communication capacity, share your own true “lessons learned” and help everyone to benefit from your successes, struggles, or failures.

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February 1st, 2011 | Tags: communication, context, lessons learned, share, team, Teambuilding | Category: 2011, STAT, STAT 5MM | Leave a comment

One of the most valued gifts you can give is to make people aware of the difference they make. Prepare before your next team gathering to give special thanks, appreciation and acknowledgment – publicly and privately – to the people who make preparedness a reality.

Emergency responders are deservedly given all kinds of accolades and praise, so be sure to bring special attention to the champions of the less glamorous tasks of daily safety and preparedness.  Look over your team roster and see what steps people took to forward safety and preparedness. Did they patiently push-through the bureaucracy of a grant, or perhaps do all the scheduling for a class or drill, or were they the consistently smiling and willing “go to” participant?

Seek out the unsung, behind-the-scenes heroes of your preparedness efforts and sing out their praises.

Tip: Beyond helping people to recognize preparedness as a noble and heroic undertaking, have your words also help people to value simply being consistent and persistent in fulfilling on a stated goal.

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December 6th, 2010 | Tags: appreciate, communication, Holiday, Preparedness, team | Category: 2010, STAT, STAT 5MM | Leave a comment

For many people, the hardest concept to grasp with social media is that Facebook, Twitter and other platforms aren’t simply new portals for getting the same old messages out – they are part of a fundamental shift in how people select, share, receive, understand, and interact with information. This shift also changes who and what are considered the best sources for accurate information on emergency preparedness, public safety, and disaster response.

Gone are the days where a well-written press release was the key to garnering public attention.  Changing your behaviors and mindset to succeed in this new social media environment can be a challenge – especially if you don’t know the rules. Help your social media efforts to avoid some known pitfalls by reviewing the basics of good social media behavior!

Tip: Share this video with your whole team. Make sure everyone understands the scope of the social media revolution and what it means for your organization’s preparedness and response efforts.

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August 30th, 2010 | Tags: agency, communication, community, FaceBook, social media, Twitter | Category: 2010, STAT, STAT 5MM | Leave a comment

Soon we’ll have a verdict in the trial of former BART officer Johannes Mehserle. Since Oscar Grant was shot and died in Oakland, there may be great upset expressed in our community — no matter the verdict.

Our local law enforcement and community-based agencies are committed to supporting peaceful demonstrations AND to ensuring personal safety and protection of property. We urge everyone to use care and sensitivity when sharing about this situation. Word choice matters: Protest ≠ Riot. Images matter: A single image — no matter how atypical — becomes the iconic representation of a situation.

We urge all people to use nonviolent language and help us build a strong, united community with peace, prosperity and justice for all. If you have helpful nonviolent solutions, prayers, quotes, resources, etc., please contribute them on social media sites using the hashtag #unrest.

PLEASE post and share. Thank you for your support!

Ana-Marie

http://www.thekingcenter.org/ProgServices/Default.aspx

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July 3rd, 2010 | Tags: communication, Mehserle trial, nonviolent language, Oscar Grant, unrest | Category: Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Once you know WHO you should communicate with, and HOW you are going to get your message out, it is important to know WHAT to communicate. Some of the important messages to communicate will include, but are not limited to:

• A report on your agency’s operational status
• An assessment of any resulting damage to your facility
• What services are offered and whether changes in offering these services has occurred
• The necessary funds required by your agency
• Whether volunteers are needed and for what purpose
• The hours of operation for your business
• The  safety of your staff, volunteers, consumers
• Your agency wishlist
• Any other additional needs

Tips:  Create templates for basic messages so that you’ll be able to edit it and release your message quickly.

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February 12th, 2010 | Tags: agency, assessment, communication, message, report, Safety, services | Category: 2010, STAT, STAT 5MM, Uncategorized | Comments (1)