I recently read the book Super Communicators by Charles Duhigg. This is a must-read for anyone who cares about building people skills in any organization.
It’s a timely topic, given the fast move toward and adoption of AI technologies that is swinging the focus of skill building in organizations away from “hard skills” like software development and accounting, which can increasingly be replaced by AI, to skills that are a unique reflection of our human-ness.
As automation reshapes entire industries, technical expertise is no longer the only differentiator. The skills that will define the next era of leadership and collaboration are deeply human: the ability to connect, to listen, to navigate complexity in conversation. These are the skills AI can’t replicate—and the ones organizations can’t afford to overlook.
LinkedIn recently released its fastest growing skills of 2025, and among the top 10 are skills that directly relate to our ability to communicate and connect with others:
- #2 – Conflict Mitigation
- #6 – Public Speaking
- #7 – Solution-Based Selling
- #8 – Customer Engagement and Support
What do these have in common? They all rely on a person’s ability to read the room, build trust, and adapt how they communicate in real time. These aren’t just traits—they’re skills that can be developed and strengthened.
At Cloverleaf, we believe technical skills will keep evolving, but human connection is the constant that drives collaboration, trust, and performance. And the good news is: it’s not something you’re either born with or not. It’s something you can practice daily.
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What Super Communicators Understand About Human Connection
While there are many concepts, ideas, and resources in Super Communicators, I wanted to highlight a couple that often go overlooked—and that Cloverleaf has been specifically designed to support.
Duhigg’s core idea is simple but powerful: great communication isn’t about being the loudest voice in the room or the most charismatic. Super communicators aren’t born—they’re made. What sets them apart is their ability to prepare intentionally, stay curious in conversation, and create connection through active listening.
These are not vague soft skills. They’re specific behaviors backed by research. And more importantly, they can be practiced.
Our platform helps individuals and teams turn these habits into part of their daily workflow through calendar-based meeting prep, tailored coaching prompts, and reflection tools that support better conversations in real time.
When communication becomes a habit, connection becomes a competitive advantage.
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Preparation: The Underused Power Skill
One key aspect of becoming a super communicator is preparing well for meetings and conversations with others. Duhigg highlights the importance of setting yourself up with a curious mindset—one that’s ready to ask questions and learn before pushing an agenda or selling an idea.
We are well served to do a bit of prep work before a dialogue begins. Researchers at Harvard and other universities have looked at exactly which kind of prep work is helpful.
Participants in one study were asked to jot down a few topics they would like to discuss before a conversation began. This exercise took only about thirty seconds; frequently, the topics written down never came up once the discussion started. But simply preparing a list, researchers found, made conversations go better. There were fewer awkward pauses, less anxiety, and afterward, people said they felt more engaged.
This isn’t just good advice—it’s a repeatable practice. The best conversations start before the meeting even begins.
Cloverleaf makes this prep work easy.
When you connect your calendar to your Cloverleaf account, you receive a daily digest delivered directly to your inbox each morning. It includes personalized insights to help you prepare for the people you’re meeting with—like knowing a teammate prefers direct communication, or that a collaborator is energized by brainstorming. That kind of insight can shape how you approach a conversation and dramatically improve how your message is received.
Great communicators are prepared communicators—and that starts with emotional intelligence and a thoughtful understanding of how others think and interact.
You can learn more about all the great meeting insights and preparation features Cloverleaf offers by viewing our help doc here.
Listening: The Shortcut to Real Connection
It’s not enough to simply prep well for a conversation or meeting. To create meaningful connection—and drive better outcomes—you also need to listen with intention.
Duhigg dedicates a chapter to this idea, exploring the power of asking emotionally resonant questions that build connection. He shares the story of a husband-and-wife research team that brought strangers together to test different theories for forming connection and found:
There was only one method tested that could reliably help strangers form a connection: a series of 36 questions that elicited ‘sustained, escalating, reciprocal, personalistic self-disclosure.’
The key was creating vulnerability that led to emotional syncing—or emotional contagion.
This kind of connection doesn’t happen by accident. It comes from listening not just to respond, but to understand. Super communicators ask questions that invite reflection. They create space for others to feel seen, heard, and valued. That’s what builds trust—and drives real collaboration.
That insight is central to why we added discussion questions as a tool for team building in the Cloverleaf dashboard. Not every prompt is designed to surface deep vulnerability, but they are built to foster meaningful connection. And after reading Super Communicators, we even added a few new ones—see if you can spot them.
At Cloverleaf, we believe connection is built through small, intentional moments. When people feel heard, they engage more deeply with their work, their teammates, and their purpose.
Making Communication a Daily Habit
Super Communicators makes the case that great communication isn’t a personality trait—it’s a pattern of behaviors anyone can build. But even the most powerful insights fade if they aren’t applied when they matter most.
And that’s the real challenge: how do you keep practicing these skills when work gets messy, fast, and unpredictable?
Cloverleaf doesn’t teach you how to communicate in theory—it helps you show up differently in the moments that count. Right before a tough conversation. In the middle of team tension. When you’re preparing for a meeting, and realize the way you like to communicate might not be how they best receive information.
For example:
- After reading Duhigg’s advice on listening, you might recognize a moment in your daily digest where a teammate values emotional insight over data, and suddenly, the tone of your check-in shifts.
- A discussion prompt pops up that mirrors the 36 questions research—not to push vulnerability, but to spark the kind of connection that makes future feedback easier.
- Or maybe you see a coaching tip that reminds you to pause and ask a question instead of jumping straight to a solution.
These are small, human moments. But they’re where communication skills take root. Not in theory, but in practice. Not once, but repeatedly.
Because the future of work doesn’t need more communication training. It needs more communicators who know how to practice what matters—day by day, conversation by conversation.
What Could Shift if You Started With Curiosity?
Communication often breaks down not because people lack information, but because they’re missing perspective. We rush to solve, defend, and persuade. But what if we started with a different goal?
What if the next conversation wasn’t about being heard, but about understanding someone else more fully?
The research in Super Communicators makes this clear: the quality of our communication depends less on what we say and more on how we show up. With curiosity. With intention. With a willingness to prepare, to listen, and to connect.
That’s not just a personal skill—it’s a team advantage. One that deepens trust, strengthens collaboration, and unlocks better outcomes across the board.
So here’s the question this article leaves us with:
What might change in your team, your culture, or your leadership—if curiosity became your default starting point?
