The Richly or Poorly Show
Show Transcript
shdawson-20260630.mp3
Episode 06/30/2026
06/30/2026
Hello! Welcome to The Richly or Poorly Show!
My name is Dr. Stephen Dawson, and I am your show host.
Thank you for joining me.
Please visit shdawson DOT COM SLASH podcast and click on the LINK offer to learn about The Richly or Poorly Show!
I invite you to visit the podcast web page. Scroll down to the bottom of this web page to receive the transcript of each show episode. The transcripts await you so you can copy either any or all of them to your device so you can have them with you to help you live your life more richly!
Also, you will see a link on the podcast web page at the beginning of the episode list to the show episode map web page. The map presents the show episodes to you by topic, so you can both find and enjoy a group of show episodes with ease.
Please visit shdawson DOT COM SLASH subscribe to join my optional email list to receive time-sensitive news on The Richly or Poorly Show, my public speaking activities, and anything else that is suitable for me to send to you.
Please listen to, follow, and like the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and wherever you listen.
And please remember to leave the show a nice review.
Please share the show with your friends. Send them the link to my podcast web page, and offer to help them set up their device to subscribe to the show.
Thank you to the six streaming services that syndicate The Richly or Poorly Show!
Thank you to the anonymous, individual, and contributor sponsors of The Richly or Poorly Show! I am still looking for my first commercial sponsor.
Finally, please continue to email your questions and comments about the show to service AT shdawson DOT COM.
The show's motto is unmistakable: RICHLY IS GOODLY!
Please consider how you define the term good as we journey through life together in your pursuit of defining the term richly in your life.
Last week, I expanded on a key concept of the prior episode: Those who attempt to write in a language they do not understand will be out of work in well less than a decade from today. I shared extensively last week on considering how well a person needs to understand a language to use a language in the context of how artificial intelligence is impacting humanity today. I answered the question of how well a person needs to understand a language to use a language as well enough to have zero errors in both their spelling and grammar, along with enough understanding of a writing style so their writing would be understood by a reader in a way that they would want to read it, understand it, and want more of it. Otherwise, there is no way to prove a person can use a language.
Today, I will present how to achieve the condition known as communication based on your efforts to message with your intended receiver. Please note, communication is not that hard to accomplish in life.
I presented in the June 2nd, 2026, episode about the mechanics of messaging and communication. I shared that there are five parts to communication:
-Sender
-Message
-Encoding
-Channel
-Receiver
I urge you to review that episode either before or after you listen to this episode, as you see fit.
Now, what is the purpose of communication? There are three and only three reasons to accomplish communication: Either inform, entertain, or persuade.
Please note the usage of either-or in the preceding statement. It is crucial to understand that all messaging is designed to accomplish only one form of communication at a time. It is understood that multiple communication attempts are in play at almost all times between a sender and a receiver by way of multiple messages being sent and received at almost all times. These multiple communication attempts occur in only two parts of communication:
-Encoding
-Channel
The sender and receiver parts cannot be isolated to a single person sending and a single person receiving, based on the CASCADING effect of all communication. The message part cannot be isolated to a discrete unit of communication, based on the CUMULATIVE effect of all communication.
So, the power of accomplishing the condition known as communication occurs ONLY at the encoding and channel parts.
Now, this is where we move from only considering sending and receiving in messaging. You see, the sender is also the leader of the receiver, who is the follower. The sender is asking for something from the receiver. They are asking the receiver to both understand their message and believe it contains the Truth. So, you most likely understand at this point that the condition known as communication is asking A LOT of a person who is a receiver.
It is my considered position that a follower of a leader has two probable wants at all times. First, to have fun as a follower of a specific leader. Second, to participate meaningfully in the collective effort formed by the specific leader.
My offer to the listeners in my intended audience last week was to present today on how to achieve the condition known as communication based on your efforts to message with your intended receiver. Here is how I accomplish communication, and how I recommend others accomplish messaging to accomplish the desired purpose of their communication.
Think of an infant. The infant is crying. There are three common reasons why they are crying.
TIRED:
They are struggling both physically and mentally to focus, to remain conscious, and they do not want to struggle.
HUNGRY:
They are struggling both physically and mentally to gain food, to remain satisfied, and they do not want to struggle.
DIAPER:
They are struggling both physically and mentally to not be near what they have released, and they do not want to struggle.
The pattern here is that they are experiencing a struggle that they do not want to experience. This is the first want of the follower: to have fun as a follower. The infant is the follower of their caregiver, in this example.
The infant wants to participate meaningfully in the collective effort by crying, whether they understand it or not. They want to be free of their struggle, they want their caregiver to help them be free of their struggle, and they want to have anything they can fathom understanding to participate meaningfully in the collective effort.
The infant crying shows us what is called Followership Failures. A follower fails to follow their leader when they cannot accomplish what is expected to the point of required of them in the leader-follower relationship. Remember, a leader and follower form this relationship by free choice. Otherwise, the relationship is not a leader leading a follower to follow. It is something constructed by force, such as a commander forcing others to obey them, or a bully forcing people to respect them.
The first two Followership Failures are shown in the crying infant:
-Insufficiency
-Insecurity
The infant cannot resolve their struggle on their own due to an insufficiency, and they are scared about their struggle continuing, causing them to feel insecure about many aspects of life.
The mindset of feeling insufficient does have the mindset of insecurity coming with it frequently, but it is not a guarantee that one will always accompany the other. Now, let's take a look at the three reasons to accomplish communication based on what we just covered about Followership Failures.
INFORM:
A leader could send a message to inform their follower. The leader is the sender, and the follower is the receiver. The follower could send a message to inform their leader. The follower is the sender, and the leader is the receiver. If the sender feels insufficient to construct the message to the receiver, then there are countless problems experienced in the message construct, the encoding. The result is less fun for a follower of a specific leader. Second, there are countless problems experienced in participating meaningfully in the collective effort, the channel. If the sender feels insecure about sending the message to the receiver, then there are countless problems experienced in the message construct, in the encoding, and in the channel. The more the size and complexity combination of either the insufficient feeling, the insecure feeling, or both, then the less chance the message has in succeeding to inform a follower.
ENTERTAIN:
A sender is not a leader of the receiver, as the receiver is not following the leader. There is no return message guaranteed in entertainment. Entertainment is a one-way message with no guarantee the message will ever be either received, understood, acknowledged, or liked by the receiver. The condition known as communication only occurs when the receiver sends a message to the sender who is doing the entertaining, where the sender and receiver have the 100% same understanding of the message. This entertain message is not the same as the information message, as there is no leader-follower relationship in place to act as a framework for the message to be either constructed, encoded, or channeled back to the person who sent the original message, in this case, a message to entertain.
PERSUADE:
A message to persuade someone is quite similar to a message to entertain someone. Think politics, debates, or even the crying infant who wants to be free from their struggle and does not stop crying until they either get a desired response from their caregiver or they become unconscious. There is no return message guaranteed in a persuade message. Persuading is a one-way message with no guarantee that the message will ever be either received, understood, acknowledged, or liked by the receiver. This message is not the same as the information message, as there is no leader-follower relationship in place to act as a framework for the message to be constructed, encoded, or channeled back to the person who sent the original message, in this case, a message to persuade.
So, let's review a bit to summarize what we have just covered. We are looking for the means of how to achieve the condition known as communication based on your efforts to message with your intended receiver. We have covered today that the two dominant Followership Failures are insufficiency and insecurity. We have covered that there are three purposes of communication: Either inform, entertain, or persuade. We covered the only communication purpose that has the leader-follower relationship is the inform option.
It is my considered position that a follower wants to have fun as a follower of a specific leader and to participate meaningfully in the collective effort. This combination is the answer to the question of how to achieve the condition known as communication.
First, you need a leader-follower relationship.
Second, the having fun part must have more value in the mind of the receiver to justify the cost in the mind of the receiver to be a follower of a leader.
Finally, participating meaningfully in the collective effort must have more value in the mind of the receiver to justify the cost in the mind of the receiver to be a follower of a leader.
So, the construct of the leader-follower relationship is the center of this proverbial wagon wheel. If this leader-follower relationship is not formed solidly, then it cannot exist solidly.
Let's go through three common examples to illustrate the point I just presented.
BOSS-WORKER RELATIONSHIP:
The boss is the leader, and the worker is the follower. The entire job definition of the worker comes from the boss. The worker is paid to do their work, based on their job definition. There is nothing in this scenario that guarantees the company will profit based on the decisions of the boss. The only guarantee is that the worker does what the boss pays them to do based on their job definition.
If the worker does not deliver on the requirements of their job definition to their boss, then the worker is not paid by their boss. If the worker does not deliver on the requirements of their job definition to their boss AND is paid by their boss, then the worker is the boss. The worker is then the leader, and their boss is then their follower. The entire boss-worker relationship fails at this point. There is no ability for the condition known as communication to exist between the boss and the worker, as the leader-follower relationship no longer exists.
PARENT-CHILD RELATIONSHIP:
The parents are the leader and the child is the follower. The child is dependent on everything from their parents to exist. The child, in theory, is equipped by their parents to grow into an adult. The entire child development definition for the child comes from their parents. There is nothing in this scenario that guarantees the child will become an adult based on the decisions of the parents. The only guarantee is that the child does what the parents tell them to do based on their child development definition.
If the child does not deliver on the requirements of their child development definition to their parents, then the child is not able to be an adult. If the child does not deliver on the requirements of the child development definition to their parents, AND is identified as an adult by their parents, then the child is the parent. The child is then the leader, and their parents are their followers. The entire parent-child relationship fails at this point. There is no ability for the condition known as communication to exist between the parent and the child, as the leader-follower relationship no longer exists.
GOVERNMENT-CITIZEN RELATIONSHIP:
The citizens are the leaders, and the government is the follower. The citizens are not dependent on their government to exist. The citizens, in theory, are not equipped by their government to be citizens. The entire definition of the citizen comes from the citizen. There is nothing in this scenario that guarantees the country will profit based on the decisions of the citizens. The only guarantee is that the government does what the citizens defines of it based on their definition of the citizen.
If the citizen does not deliver on the requirements of their citizen definition to their government, then the citizen is not able to be a citizen.
If the citizen does not deliver on the requirements of their citizen definition to their government AND is identified as a citizen by their government, then the government is the citizen. The government is then the leader, and the citizen is their follower. The entire government-citizen relationship fails at this point. There is no ability for the condition known as communication to exist between the citizen and the government, as the leader-follower relationship no longer exists.
I hope you see that the success of messaging is based on both the sender and the receiver having enough proverbial skin in the game to value one another where they each want to receive, understand, and have more messaging from one another, where they both have enough control of their respective insufficiencies and insecurities to be a leader and a follower in the flow of messaging for the condition known as communication to exist between them.
There you have it ... how to achieve the condition known as communication based on your efforts to message with your intended receiver. This is how I accomplish communication, and how I recommend others accomplish messaging to accomplish the desired purpose of their communication.
Please understand that I value communication as a precious thing in life. I gladly expend my time and effort to message with my intended receiver by holding the hope that they will value me as I value them. Communication is a means to an end to accomplish a specific desired result. My intent to send messages to listeners in my intended audience is to help them live their lives more richly. I send these messages because I hold the belief that it is the right thing for me to do. Right, in terms of my combined worldview, ethics, morality, and virtue. The chaos that comes from not having communication is a horrible condition, as I understand life and death. I am convinced it is better to communicate than not to communicate. Hence, you and I are messaging one another to achieve the condition known as communication, so you can stop living your life poorly.
Well, that's it for today.
RICHLY IS GOODLY!
Thank you for joining me for this episode of The Richly or Poorly Show!
I have enjoyed presenting to you today.
Until the next episode, I hope you will be safe and join me next week.
Until then.
© 2026 SH Dawson. All rights reserved.