Opening Note
This week will be a moment maker for my family.
My Nana, Phyllis Cotter Raymond turns 100 on Saturday. Later this week, our youngest son, Gabe, graduates from high school.
One looking back across a century of change. The other stepping into a future changing faster than any generation before him. Needless to say – I am experiencing all the feels and can’t help but think about what moments like this ask us to reflect upon.
My Nana has lived through wars, economic upheaval, enormous cultural shifts, and a scale of transformation that is difficult to comprehend. She went from radio to television to the internet and social media (yes, she does social!).
But what stands out most to me isn’t the technology she witnessed; it’s the steadiness with which she moved through it all.
After losing her husband when my dad was 13, she raised four children while working at a bank –meeting life as it came with resilience, perspective and remarkably good humor intact.
Her family is her favorite statistic– 46 people on this earth here and thriving because she fell in love and got married to Warren Cotter all those years ago.
Then there’s Gabe. Watching him graduate is one of those moments that makes time feel both incredibly fast and very slow all at once. His word of the year is moments. And he is having them – all the senior year things and more. Gabe is also a resourceful and resilient guy. He’s lived up to his childhood nickname: Good Time Charlie and we have no doubt he will thrive as a sports management major.
As parents, we spend years preparing our children for the world ahead while quietly knowing it will look very different than the one we entered ourselves.
Different generations. Different disruptions.
For my family, and many, many others, the coming week will be about meeting the moment.
Commencement speeches, family advice, even the words written inside Hallmark cards are all attempts to help people navigate transition. The best ones acknowledge the reality people are actually facing. Others miss the moment entirely.
Families aren’t the only places where this matters. Leadership works the same way.
People rarely need perfect words. More often, they need communication that feels honest, steady, and aligned with the moment they’re living through.
The strongest leaders understand communication isn’t just about delivering information. It’s about helping people make sense of change, uncertainty, transition, and possibility.
And maybe that’s the real thread connecting a 100th birthday and a graduation.
No generation escapes uncertainty or change. The details evolve, but the human requirements remain remarkably consistent: resilience, adaptability, perspective, meaningful relationships, and the willingness to keep moving forward with purpose and good humor intact.
This week, our family will celebrate both legacy and possibility.
One life that helped shape the generations that followed. Another just beginning to shape his own.
Both reminders that how we meet the moment matters.
Worth Your Time
A few things that stood out this week—not surprisingly, all connected in different ways to transitions, moments in time, and the future people are trying to navigate right now.
A commencement speaker mentioning AI and automation was met with boos from graduates. Uncomfortable, yes—but also honest. The uncertainty around the future of work is real. A good reminder that truth matters. So does whether people feel seen inside the message.
I also appreciated this piece by Marina Calestru on the evolution of communication strategy roles. Spot on. Increasingly, communication leaders are being asked to help organizations navigate trust, timing, meaning, and alignment versus just messaging.
“The Great Flattening” conversation around careers and AI is also worth paying attention to. Adaptability, relationship skills, and the ability to learn continuously may matter more than traditional career paths alone.
And one thing I hope never gets lost in all the disruption: all work has dignity. The trades deserve more focus and consideration. Have you noticed Mike Rowe’s latest work on closing the skills gap through scholarships and work ethic programs?
Finally, a small reminder I need to put on repeat: micro-habits matter. Big transitions are often navigated through small repeated behaviors long before results become visible.
The Leadership Edge
One shift leaders need right now?
Stop focusing only on the message itself—and pay closer attention to whether the message matches the moment people are actually living through.
That gap is where trust, clarity, and connection are often won or lost.
I shared a practical framework on this recently in my Fix the Messaging Gap carousel. If communication feels like it’s not landing the way you intended lately, this may be why.
Click image to see full carousel
Beyond the Room
This week, I’ve been especially aware of pace. Not just work pace—life pace.
There are seasons where acceleration makes sense. And then there are seasons where protecting your energy, your attention, and your presence matters more. Right now, I’m trying to be intentional about the difference. So, I’ve been enjoying quieter inputs lately.
Reading Mona’s Eyes for book group, and already intrigued.
Watched Nuremberg on Netflix—excellent historical fiction with more modern-day leadership and societal parallels than I expected.
Discovered Chasing the Spark podcast. hosted by fellow comms professionals Heather Henry and her sister Katie Gouldner, their conversations feel like sitting in on a thoughtful happy hour with smart, funny women figuring life out in real time.” Be sure to catch the “Try New Things This Spring” episode.
Need to do some tech spring cleaning.
Curious about fun, off-the-beaten-path things to do in London and Cambridge, UK. Contemplating the Handel-Hendrix House in London, a Ted Lasso tour in Richmond, and a punting tour of the backside of the Cambridge colleges. Share your favorites in the comments or DM me!
What’s Ahead
I’m working with a small number of leaders stepping into new or expanded roles—particularly those navigating visibility, complexity, and the need to establish credibility quickly.
If that’s something you’re thinking about send me a DM and we can schedule a conversation.
—Lauren
Seen. Heard. Trusted.
(Note: All links are shared as a courtesy—there are no partnerships or financial benefits tied to any recommendations.)