In this episode, Josh and John unpack a deceptively simple but powerful truth: communication is both transmission and reception — and most leaders focus too heavily on the former. Drawing from the Communication Codeframework by GiANT Worldwide, they explore how intention, clarity, and receptivity shape every conversation — at work, at home, and in the spaces in between.

They open with reflections on personal rhythms, learning events, and the importance of walking (for knees and for clarity) before diving into the art of setting conditions for effective communication. John shares insights from Simon Sinek’s “Know Your Why” and The Atlantic’s piece on distracted parenting, illustrating how modern distractions erode our ability to truly listen and receive.

Josh introduces the five core intentions of communication — to care, celebrate, critique, clarify, and collaborate — and how naming these purposes can transform meetings, relationships, and team culture. Together, they break down how misalignment between intention and perception can derail trust, and how explicit communication framing helps teams stay connected and emotionally attuned.

• Communication is not complete without both transmission and reception.

• Setting the conditions for communication (minimizing distraction, clarifying intent) is foundational.

• The five communication codes—Care, Celebrate, Critique, Clarify, Collaborate—help leaders name the whybehind what they say.

• Explicitly naming your communication intent improves trust and reduces misinterpretation.

• Celebration and care are often undervalued but essential forms of communication that sustain team health.

In your next team meeting or 1:1, name the type of communication you’re using:

• Are you collaborating, clarifying, or critiquing?

• Are you showing care or celebration?

Use this awareness to align your intent with how others receive it. And for an extra challenge — find a way to intentionally celebrate someone or something this week.

How often do you name your intention before communicating — and how might doing so change the way your message lands?

• Simon Sinek – “Know Your Why” (video clip)

• The Atlantic (2018) – “The Dangers of Distracted Parenting”

• The Communication Code – Jeremie Kubicek & Steve Cockram, GiANT Worldwide

“Your job as a leader isn’t just to say what you mean — it’s to make sure it lands with your team.” – Josh Hugo

In this episode, Josh and John take a second pass at one of leadership’s most defining skills — communication. Moving beyond what we say to how and why we say it, they explore the motives, tendencies, and patterns that shape our words and impact our teams. Through real examples and archetypes, they help listeners identify what drives their communication habits and how self-awareness transforms connection and clarity.

• Motives and tendencies: Awareness doesn’t erase them, but it helps leaders recognize and redirect them.

• Patterns and behavior: You can’t always change your wiring, but you can change your actions.

• Communication archetypes: The visionary, the perfectionist, and the over-talker — and what they reveal about leadership motives.

• Transmission and receiving: Great communication is both speaking and listening with intention.

• Be interested, not interesting: Curiosity builds trust more than charisma ever will.

• “Are you trying to be more interesting or more interested?”

• “Your motives aren’t going anywhere — but your patterns can change.”

• “You can’t delegate responsibility and still hold all the authority.”

• “Communication equals transmission plus receiving.”

Take ten minutes this week to reflect — and write it down.

1. Name one behavior you notice in the way you communicate (talking over, holding back, over-explaining, etc.).

2. Ask yourself why: What’s the motive beneath it? What are you afraid of, avoiding, or trying to prove?

3. Get feedback: Ask one trusted colleague or friend to describe how they experience your communication.

4. Set an intention: Choose one way to practice being more interested than interesting in your next conversation.

In this episode of Leadership Limbo, Josh and John dive into one of the most foundational—and often overlooked—skills of leadership: communication. Picking up from their exploration of performance and management, they shift focus to the ways leaders communicate with their teams, their peers, and their managers.

The conversation unpacks a simple but powerful formula:

Communication = Transmission + Reception.

It’s not enough to just speak or listen—both have to work in tandem for true understanding.

Josh and John frame today’s tension as the gap between accidental communication and intentional communication. Too often, leaders over-invest in the intentional while overlooking how much influence their “accidental” moments - or overall lack of self-awareness and intentionality about their communication - can have on team trust, alignment, and culture.

Along the way, they share personal reflections on their own communication gaps—Josh’s tendency to over-talk as a verbal processor, John’s habit of letting facial expressions betray his thoughts—and highlight why building self-awareness is essential.

They also introduce practical tools, linked below:

• Blindspotting – A model for uncovering motives and tendencies that drive leadership behaviors.

• The Five Voices – A personality-based framework for understanding your natural communication style and how others receive it.

The big takeaway? Leaders need to narrow the gap between formal and informal communication by increasing self-awareness and choosing intentionality in both. Communication is the foundation of alignment, execution, and trust—and without it, even the best strategies fall flat.

Resources:

• Free 5 Voice Assessment and Report: Click Here
• Blindspotting: Click Here