The Beauty of One Hour

I knew Joey Reiman as a world-class copywriter at the Advertising Agency, Benton & Bowles. He gave a galvanizing talk at the P&G Alumni Reunion in 2019 on Brand Purpose. I also spoke at this event. His email to me following the event captured more out of what I was trying to say than I ever said. He plays back to me what I shared with him but with fresh and memorable insight and far greater eloquence than I offered. Here is the message he sent to me. "I just returned from Madrid, Spain where I spoke at a magnificent P&G global conference. While I love speaking, I so much more loved listening to former P&G Chairman and CEO, John Pepper, who spoke about the beauty of 'one hour'. This hour, he says, would be shared by two people—as a special time and place where each person would listen to the other. 30 minutes each. Two strangers who would forever become confidants. It’s called genuine connection. Being present enough to understand the others life. No small talk. Rather what are you grateful for? When was the last time you cried? What makes you feel wonderful and what makes you feel at home? What lights your spirit on fire? He went on to say that there are all kinds of listening. But the best way to listen is with your heart. Until then, I had been always focused on what I would say in a speech. Now I will make it a point to arrive before the speech and talk with members of the audience about them. Then I can have a spiritual dialogue with my audience rather than a lesser rousing monologue. I will also take off my headphones on planes which I always had on to prevent conversation. Listening is the path to friendship, a relationship and leadership. Indeed listening floats all ships. The words ‘listen’ and ‘silent’ have the same letters. So have a conversation with someone you don’t know. You just might learn that to “know thyself” comes in second to knowing another". Joey Reiman". Joey's message continues to resonate and guide me, not nearly as often as I would like..