Stay short, not shallow.

Mark Twain famously said “the difference between the almost right word and the right word . . . ’tis the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.”

“All you can do is the next right thing.”

“Brevity is confidence. Length is fear.”

➎ Be humble. If you’re a CEO, leader or manager, you’re successful and hopefully smart. But not that smart. Show gratitude, admit mistakes, poke fun at yourself. It frees those around you to stop acting like self-important corporate jackasses too.

Mission matters. Find ways to pull your items back to the soul and purpose of your organization. “Why it matters” is the perfect device. • It is impossible to overdose on this: Your mission begins to sink in only when you’ve annoyed yourself with repetition.

Fun fact: We allow every employee to ask anything anonymously—absolutely anything—and read the question verbatim in a weekly meeting, no matter how blunt or rude, then answer it. Yes, this can be awkward.

Always judge the work from the perspective of the viewer.

One thing we can guarantee you with certainty: If you don’t know your one-sentence takeaway, there’s no chance your audience will either.