Dr. Korey Watkins is a clinical psychologist in Austin, and he has spent more than 15 years doing work where the conversation is the whole job. In this episode, Korey and Jake talk about what it really takes to be present with another person, why silence can be the most powerful thing you say, and how to walk into a hard conversation without dreading it.

You will hear how Korey built his conversation skills on purpose, why he treats every talk as two people sharing a moment, and the simple model he created for the hardest conversations of all. Whether you are a therapist, a product leader, or a parent, the lessons here carry over to any conversation that matters.

In this episode

• How Korey learned conversation skills, and why he was not just born good at it
• The grad school habit of saying hi to strangers to build his confidence
• Why he once sat in silence with a patient for half an hour, and what she remembered most
• Conversation as relationship, not a list of questions to get answered
• How to share part of yourself while still holding clear boundaries
• A fresh way to think about conflict so you stop avoiding hard talks
• The trap of "one way is good, one way is bad," and why your style is your strength
• The CLEAR model from Korey's upcoming book, and how it works even for tough customer conversations

About the guest

Dr. Korey Watkins is a clinical psychologist based in Austin, Texas. He works at the VA, serves in the US Army Reserve, and runs a private practice on the south side of Austin. He is also writing a book called How to Tell Them, about talking to children and teens through life's hardest moments.

Find Korey here:

• Website: https://www.drkoreylwatkins.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drkoreylwatkins/
  

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