Number 1 of 52 Compelling Communicators - Bill Baker

January 07, 2013

Bill Baker is one of those authentic storytellers who commands attention wherever he goes.  I have witnessed his unique ability to inspire people to put forward better work when they have done a less than adequate job.  His approach is uniformly positive, yet direct.  Magical to watch.  Check out Bill's blog or website.  His stories will make you think, laugh and cry.


How would you describe yourself as a child?
Outgoing and exuberant.

What helped you become a good communicator?
- As a teacher and minister, my father was an amazing communicator.  
- Observing both bad and good communicators in action. 
- Being the consummate middle child in my family and being heavily involved in theatre in my youth.

What are the traits of a good communicator?
Listening more than you speak. Acknowledging what people have said and making certain they know you have heard them. Pulling people into ideas and understanding versus pushing messages and information down upon them. Making certain that everything you communicate is clear, simple and most importantly relevant to the people you're communicating with.


What tip or advice would you give someone to become a better communicator?
Shut up and listen. Say less but make it really count when you say something. Don't try to be the smartest person in the room. Treat communications as exchange, a dialogue versus a one-way monologue. Make it about them; not about you. 

What is your biggest communication related pet peeve?
People who don't listen, bar none.
Who do you think is a compelling communicator? And, what makes him or her compelling?
Bill Clinton is one of the best communicators I've ever seen. I've seen him speak three times in different environments, from an arena full of 20,000 people to a room full of 200. In all situations, he makes you feel like you're sitting on the couch with him just having a conversation. He is passionate without coming across as overly zealous. He is wise and knowledgeable without coming across as arrogant. More than anything, he is genuine and not afraid to show that he is fallible, vulnerable...human.

Please share a communication story (good or bad) that will be beneficial to others.
From a past blog post, "You've got an elevator pitch, but what's your sermon?" I am, as the song goes, the son of a preacher man. When I was young, my dad would sit at his desk on Saturday afternoons and write out his sermons: always in longhand, always on a yellow legal pad. Truth be told, when Sunday service rolled around, I didn’t really pay attention to those sermons, passing the time instead by marveling at the tapestry of women’s hats in attendance, counting the number of window panes in French or praying that my mom would make BLT’s for lunch. I was a kid, after all. But as an adult, I have had the opportunity to go back and read the sermons of my now-deceased father, preserved in the steely confines of his filing cabinet. What struck me about those sermons is how my father infused his own passions and perspective into them, blending them with the lessons of the church so that people got a real sense of what drove him as a person. Through his sermons, you got to know him, and in knowing him, you were more likely to relate to him and follow his counsel. For the rest of this blog post, please go here.  

Bill Baker describes himself as a recovering advertising executive, having spent 18 years in that business. For the past seven years, however, he has been squeaking out a living as a strategic storyteller, planner, speaker, blogger and principal of BB&Co Strategic Storytelling Inc.

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