Communicating Better in The Age of AI, Creating a Great Second Life & Industry News

Welcome to Potentially Focused! It's Tuesday, August the 5th. And wherever you are today, I hope your morning is off to a fabulous start!

Today we...

• Improve our office communication to keep up with AI.

• Get over our myth gap and get to our great second life.

• Pass along interesting news about AI, storytelling, podcast revenue and a rising comic.

• And, as always, we've got some fun distractions for your weekend.

Please like, subscribe, and share with anyone you like. We are not picky and always grateful for your help in spreading the word!

All my best,

Marco

Here goes...

SOME POTENTIALLY INTERESTING TV AND MEDIA NEWS

First up, some AI news you may have missed... Fable debuted its streaming service, Showrunner, this week. Amazon is an investor. Subscribers, who pay $10-$40 per month for credits, will be able to generate their own animated scenes or build on existing IP. As an example, CEO Edward Saatchi noted that a partnership with Disney could see subscribers making their own Star Wars stories, characters, and worlds. And if working off of well known existing IP isn't your jam, Showrunner also has its own shows users can watch or build on, even generating themselves as cartoon characters. 

Turning from the future of storytelling to my distant work past... A billion years ago when dinosaurs still roamed the city streets and occasionally interrupted our company conference room meetings, I worked at Nick@Night. And, our team produced a comedy competition looking for The Funniest Mom in America. Leanne Morgan didn't win it, but she was a contestant and I will say even though she ended up not winning, her talent was more than evident.

So, it gave me great pleasure to see her release a strong Netflix special a little while back and now she is launching her own sitcom. She talks about that and more in this episode of Good Hang with Amy Poehler, which is BTW one of the fastest growing podcasts right now.

And here's a review which simultaneously pans the show while falling for its charm. I haven't watched yet, but whatever the case, I'm rooting for Leanne's continued success!

Finally, Amy Poehler isn't the only celebrity with a podcast... The CEO of Joe Budden’s podcast company told The New York Times that The Joe Budden Network is on pace to bring in $20 million in 2025. Here's a link to the article if you want to find out more and you know you do!

And now...

HOW TO COMMUNICATE BETTER TO KEEP UP WITH AI

As a general rule, I try not to share recommendations from the same sources too often. But, sometimes, what people are putting out is too interesting or valuable not to share. So, this week, I'm breaking my (general) rule and sharing a post from Personal Math with Greg & Taylor for the second week in a row.

In their Friction Will Not Be Tolerated piece they point out that if your communication style creates friction you will struggle in the age of AI. What they mean is AI is so instantaneous that those who can't provide answers in a thoughtful, yet condensed way that anticipates follow ups will see their work relationships and career prospects suffer. As AI is increasingly adopted, that kind of full, yet brief-ish response is what we'll all get used to and expect.

So, what to do?

First off, get a better understanding of how your communication may be creating friction right now.

Greg & Taylor list these examples of bad habits you or your coworkers (or so many of us) may be guilty of:

• Not enough information. You ask a question like: “What’s the plan for the next product launch?” and the person says, “It’s next month.” So then you have to go back and ask for the exact date / launch details / etc.

• Too much information. You ask, “How has the new consultant been doing?” and you get a 5-paragraph response with lots of extraneous details that don’t matter. This is often written with no bullets / guideposts to tell you what you’re reading.

• Lack of data. The communication is missing a key data point or insight that would help drive home the point quickly.

• Slowness. The person doesn’t respond quickly enough – either more than an hour for an urgent issue, or more than 24 hours for a non-urgent one. (Yes, you can’t compete with AI on speed – but being VERY slow will be even more noticeable now).

• No anticipation of further needs. The person provides the information requested, but only that information - they don’t go a step further to anticipate what the follow-up question will be (or ask, “Would it be helpful to …?”).

And now that you have a better idea of what causes friction, here are the authors' suggestions for how to remove that friction from your communication:

1. Give the FULL answer – but make it quick. AI doesn't make you ask follow-up questions. If someone asks "What's our Q4 revenue looking like?" don't just say, “Good.” Say: “Q4 revenue is tracking 12% above plan at $2.3M, driven primarily by the enterprise deals that closed in November. We're on pace to hit $2.5M by year-end.”

2. Provide the answer, not a link to the answer. AI gives you the information directly, not homework. Don't say “it's in this document” or “check the dashboard.”

3. Lead with the conclusion, then support it with 1-2 key data points. AI structures information in order of importance, not chronologically. Start with your bottom line: “We should delay the product launch,” then support it: “Beta testing shows 23% of users can't complete the core workflow, and fixing this will take 3-4 weeks.”

4. Give the answer in the context of the question. AI can generally intuit the intention behind questions – and often it reminds you of that context in its answer. If your boss asks "How's the new hire doing?" they're probably wondering about performance and retention, not their favorite lunch spot. Answer: “Given our goal to have her take over 3 major clients by Thanksgiving, Sarah’s ahead of expectations – I expect her to be handling Nike on her own by end of month.”

5. Put physical structure around your information. AI uses formatting to make information scannable. Use bullets or bold key terms (without going crazy with bolding). Make it easy for someone to find what they need in 3 seconds, even if they're skimming.

6. Anticipate the obvious follow-up questions. If you're reporting a problem, include what you're doing about it. Save people from having to ping you again.

7. Provide options, not just problems. AI rarely gives you a problem without suggesting solutions. If you're raising an issue, come with 2-3 potential solutions ranked by your recommendation. Don't make people do the brainstorming work – do it for them, then let them choose or modify.

Hmmmm....

One of the things I'm most proud of in my career is that some time ago a very smart boss of mine asked me to work on being more concise. Though it may be hard to see it based on the posts on this newsletter sometimes AND admitting I'm far from perfect... Over time, in both my written and verbal business communication I have gotten much better at just getting to the point. So much so, that I now often notice in others the misguided emphasis on providing EVERY bit of information on a given situation. It comes from a good place usually, but it's also a waste of time.

Speaking of which, I am a fan of the author's suggestions. Some, I think I do quite naturally. I am, as an example, very unlikely to give a lazy answer like "click on the link."

But, most importantly, this article inspires me to continue to work on how I present information at work. And, makes me think about how that style has to change over time, perhaps never more so than right now as we integrate AI into our business and life.

That said, it's worthy noting that there's no one size fits all method of communication. It's smart to find what works best for you, your coworkers, boss, and company culture. My guess is if you go at it that way, you'll find the right style.

Next up...

YOUR TWO LIVES AND THE MYTH GAP

One of the central themes of this newsletter is that stories matter. None more so than the stories we tell ourselves about our life and ourselves.

In this Psychology Today piece, author Jeff DeGraff takes up the idea of internal storytelling and how it impacts whether we are able to move on to successful second acts.

As usual and you are welcome, here's a quick summary, but me sure to read the piece in full!

DeGraff points out that we all lead two lives. In our first life, we learn what our story is, we face challenges and we define ourselves. And we determine if those challenges doom us to certain fates or circumstances.

In our second lives, we ARE either doomed by the bad lessons of our first life (IE - I'm unlucky in life or love, etc) or we create a redemptive arc and move on to productive new phase of our life. Another way to say it is, it appears some people grow from failure, while others get trapped by it and stuck in a personal story that always has a bad ending.

DeGraff says, it's not to say structural barriers aren’t real. They are. But so is self-deception—the myth that the “system” is always the reason we can’t move forward. It’s not a bad experience alone that breaks us. It’s the failure to revise the myth.

We all carry a personal narrative—what psychologist Dan McAdams calls a “narrative identity.” It’s the evolving story we tell ourselves about who we are, where we’ve been, and where we’re going. For some, those stories are redemptive: Mistakes are transformed into growth, suffering into strength. For others, they’re what McAdams calls “contamination stories”: A bad event spoils everything, and the story can’t move forward.

According to DeGraff, that gap between what we expected and what we experienced creates a rupture. Whether or not we learn to rewrite the story may determine whether we get a second life—or stay stuck in the first.

Getting stuck is no fun to say the least, but it's also hard work sometimes to move forward. It can feel overwhelming.

Luckily, DeGraff has some pointers:

Change—real change—isn’t just behavioral. He says it’s narrative.

And, thankfully, you don’t need to rewrite your whole life story. You just need to ask different questions.

• Instead of: Why did this happen to me? try: What does this change about how I see the world—and myself?

• Instead of: How do I fix everything I broke? try: How do I grow from what I now understand?

• Instead of: Who’s to blame? try:What part of this story is mine to write next?

DeGraff sums it all up by saying that none of this is easy. It’s far easier to assign blame or get stuck in nostalgia. But, he points out, the second life doesn’t appear on its own. It has to be written—sometimes painfully, sometimes humbly, often slowly.

According to DeGraff, your second life begins not when everything is resolved, but when you start to make meaning from the unresolved. Because in the end, the story you tell yourself about what happened—and what it meant—may be the most powerful force in determining what happens next.

Completely agree and nicely said, Jeff DeGraff!

IT'S NEVER TOO EARLY TO START THINKING ABOUT THE WEEKEND!

Here is some fun stuff for your days off this week. Enjoy!

From The Brady Bunch's Mike Brady being an architect to Seinfeld's George Costanza fantasizing about being one, not to mention home renovation shows, TV and architects have a long shared history. This article highlights almost 50 examples of architects failing to anticipate correctly where walking paths should have been installed.

Going from walking to running, which there is a lot of in football.... Now that it's August and NFL training camp is heating up, here's a rundown of one player from each NFL Team who CBS Sports says should have their jersey number retired.

CIAO!

Thanks as always for reading and supporting this newsletter and community.

Today, we became better communicators, moved on to great new lives and even shared some interesting TV and media news.

And if that wasn't enough, as we always do, we passed along some fun stuff for you to check out this weekend.

(Frankly, I'm a tad exhausted...)

We'll be back next Tuesday, just seven short days from now, with another great edition. Until then, take some time to enjoy yourself every day and be sure to always believe in yourself!

Potentially Focused is a newsletter for busy people in the TV business (or not) who are curious. Everyone interested in growth, great new possibilities, and the stories we tell ourselves and others that either get us there or hold us back. Each edition features quick links to at least one great piece of content on professional development and one centered on personal growth. In a business where there's often not enough time to pay attention to the things that really matter, it's practical information for all your best next steps.

Thanks to you all for reading. Please let us know what you want more or less of. Please feel free to share information you’d like me to pass along to our readers. Also, always happy to feature guest contributors.

And of course, please like, subscribe, and share.

Potentially Focused is on Bluesky (@https://lnkd.in/eMtzTTf2) and Threads under my account (@marcobresaz). Please consider following us there as well.

Much appreciated,

Marco