There’s a certain kind of conversation most of us have learned to brace for.

You see the message come in. Or you’re sitting across the table (hello Thanksgiving), and the topic takes a turn you didn’t ask for—and yet somehow expected. You can almost script the next five minutes in your head.

And if you’re honest, you’re not preparing to understand. You’re preparing to respond.

I read a piece recently about how cult experts approach conversations with people who hold deeply entrenched beliefs—especially political ones. What stood out wasn’t anything flashy or tactical. It was simple. Almost disarming.

They don’t start by trying to change the person’s mind. They start by protecting the relationship.

That idea lingers. Because if we’re honest, most of us do the opposite. We walk into disagreement trying to win clarity, prove a point, or correct what feels obviously wrong. And somewhere along the way, the connection thins out—or disappears entirely.

So, I’ve been thinking about what ...

UGH. It’s Daylight Saving Time again.

The clocks jump forward. We lose an hour of sleep. Monday morning arrives faster than anyone asked for. And many of us find ourselves asking the same question we ask every single year:

Why are we still doing this? WHHHHHYYYYYYY?

Whether you love it or not, the reality is simple—every March we adjust the clock and move forward by one hour. It’s a small technical change, yet the ripple effects are immediate. Our routines feel off. Our energy dips. It takes a few days to regain our rhythm. 

Interestingly enough, this annual reset offers a parallel to communication.

Communication isn’t static. Context changes. Priorities shift. People come and go. And when we continue communicating the same way we always have, things start to drift out of alignment. Messages get missed. Conversations stall. Teams operate on slightly different “clocks.”

Daylight Saving Time reminds us of something simple and powerful: sometimes a small adjustment creates a mean...