One of the most important and most difficult skills of academic leadership is communication. In this column, the author defines what he considers to be the two most important rules for communication. The first rule, which he terms the "Great American Rule," involves trusting that the person on the other end of the line or the fax or the e-mail is as smart as you are, works as hard as you do, and is often just as frustrated. The premise of the second rule, the "Stupid Rule," is simply to concede that no one who has reached any position of authority in your organization is truly stupid.