Some Resolutions Executives Wish You Would Make
It’s the New Year. A lot of us make resolutions. “Go to the gym.” “Eliminate sweets.” Have a real lunch, instead of a latte.” Most resolutions that I hear are about people’s waistline — rarely any about one’s professional life. This prompted me to ask executives I...
How to Create Customer Evangelists
The goal of most salespeople is to call on senior-level executives. However, rarely is the sales person’s first point of contact in a large organization with the CEO, CFO or CIO. Usually, salespeople call at a much lower level initially. To short cut the amount of...
How to Influence Decision Makers Right from the Start
When proposing to C level executives, those CEO’s, CIO’s CTO’s, or CFO’s, it is necessary to remember, they are only interested in solving their company’s problems. Obviously, their bonus depends on it. They are not interested in a salesperson who seems to be pushing...
Tips for Technical Presentations
Many people find it difficult to sit through a technical presentation. One colleague said she would rather have a root canal. How then can technical speakers make people feel they got the point and that their time was well spent? Here are some suggestions for those of...
Tips from the Experts on How to Open
The hardest part of any presentation is the opening. Obviously, gaining people’s attention is critical. If you don’t captivate them as you begin, it’s not likely you will get them to listen as you move forward. Plus, seeing people looking at their phones, instead of...
Are You Prepared?
The number one reason that presentations fail is a lack of preparation. Whether you are giving an update, making a proposal, suggesting a solution or speaking at a conference, it is critical that you do your homework and understand your listeners and what you want to...
How to Think on Your Feet
There are times we make extremely important presentations. Perhaps, it is to an unhappy customer to retain the business, or maybe it is to our own management team about a controversial project. When nervous, we tend to freeze. It seems like we can’t think or breathe....
How to Keep the Multitasking Listener Attentive
Business people have short attention spans. They are used to multi-tasking and they are often preoccupied with things in their personal and business lives. Some researchers believe that the average attention span of an adult, versus a preschooler is seven seconds. In...
There Ought to Be a Law: Communication Competencies
For years, scholars have written about communication skills being the key to your business success. Almost every job lists strong communication skills as a requirement, but exactly what does that mean in the whole scheme of things. Companies need to develop...
Tips from the Top — What One CEO Practices
What do people remember? As a coach, you hope people embrace your suggestions and remember the issues they found challenging after the engagement ends. Periodically, I like to touch base with these business leaders as a double check. I had the pleasure of reconnecting...
What Do You Do If You Speak Too Fast
Do you speak too fast? Does everyone tell you to slow down? Do you also have a lot of “filler” or “crutch” words? Inevitably, if you speak quickly, there will be lots of “ums, ahs and you knows.” If this is you, don’t ignore this issue. It is not okay to speak...
Managing the Jitters
Presenting your ideas to the boss is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it’s an opportunity to show the boss you know your stuff and you are someone with real potential. On the other hand, if you don’t do a good job or your boss is disappointed with your message,...
Don’t Get Stuck on the Opening
Where most people get hung up is the opening. However, that’s actually the most important part of a conversation. If those first few minutes aren’t rock solid, it is unlikely the audience will listen all the way to the end. People make instantaneous decisions about...
How to Make It Stick
We speak to be understood, yet as Robert Greenleaf once said, “Many attempts to communicate are nullified by saying too much.” When asked about information overload in the House of Congress, Representative John Brockmann responded: “Most houseplants in the U.S. are...
Who Needs Executive Presence? You Do!
Your boss tells you that you need to work on Executive Presence. However, you are swamped, doing the job of three people and attending one meeting after another. In theory, you agree that it would be great to develop Executive Presence, but yet, you don’t really know...
The Top Three Complaints about Managers
Your first quarter is almost closed. Things are already hectic and project deadlines are piling up. There is a pressure to make the numbers. Does this sound like your life as a manager? If it does, be cautious of making the work take precedence over your people...
See Yourself as Tour Guide of Your Ideas
I just returned from a month-long tour of the Asian Pacific rim, visiting Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. In each country, I had a different tour guide. What struck me as impressive were their extraordinary communication skills. It occurs to me that we need to...
The Big 5: Why Executives Table an Issue
Most people get what they deserve! If they do a good job of presenting their idea, they get what they deserve. If they do a poor job, they also get what they deserve. This is what one COO I coached said at a recent lunch. My question to you is did you get what you...
Is Anybody Really Listening Out There?
How many times have you wondered if anybody was really listening or cared about what you were saying when giving a presentation? Obviously, the goal is to be heard by your listeners, yet, are there ways you can be sure? Yes and here is how and what the experts do!...
Turn Tough Questions into Opportunities
Sales have been lost, projects stalled and promotions given to someone else all because of the way questions were answered. Your ability to handle tough questions is critical. Since questions can make or break you, consider the following suggestions. They will help...
The Grave Digger’s Shift — What to Consider When Presenting Later in the Day
Is your presentation scheduled for 3 p.m or even later? If so, you’re in the Grave Digger’s Shift. In fact, any time you speak in the afternoon, you run the risk of digging your own grave unless you are interesting and engaging. People are tired and typically have a...
The Global Audience Shouldn’t Feel Undervalued
Hosting a meeting with a team located around the globe is challenging. People come from different cultural and language backgrounds. Often, those located away from the parent company feel like stepchildren who are tolerated, but certainly not prized. When meeting with...
Breakthrough or Breakdown
Nobody wants to leave a meeting having a breakdown, wishing you would have done something differently. All of us want to be breakthrough communicators. Getting your message across doesn’t happen by accident. It depends on considering 5 key things: Preparation. First...
Captivate, Motivate, Educate
Creating a “knock your socks off” business presentation can seem overwhelming. Regardless of whether you’re making a formal presentation at a conference or sitting across the table with a client or your boss, there are three key things to remember. Captivate Motivate...
Why Your Ideas Don’t Get Accepted
There are three reasons ideas don’t get accepted according to Rick Maurer, author of Why Don’t You Want What I Want? Reason #1: “I don’t get it.” Reason #2: “I don’t like it.” Reason #3: “I don’t like you.” Reason #1 “I don’t get it.” If customers don’t understand...
The Grave Diggers Shift: Presentations after 3 p.m.
Is your presentation scheduled for 3 p.m. or even later? If so, you’re in the Grave Digger’s Shift. In fact, any time you speak in the afternoon, you run the risk of digging your own grave unless you are interesting and engaging. People are tired and typically have a...
Tune Them in by Involving Them
Most of the time when people are brought together for face-to-face meetings, the purpose is for persuasion- either to accept an idea, buy a product or approve a decision. Often, these meetings are not successful because the speaker misunderstands the need for audience...
Be Heard — a Non-Fail Recipe
We all know that a speaker needs to be heard, whether it is in giving an update on a project, advising a client on an investment opportunity or explaining the functionality of a new product. Yet so often, business professionals are not heard. They do not connect with...
How to Wow in One-on-Ones
One-on-one meetings can often be intense. Obviously, it is important to showcase your best self – a person who is confident and committed to his or her ideas. Your body language says it all. To deliver your message and wow, consider the following suggestions. Lean in....
The Art of Persuasion: Two Musts!
From the time we are babies, we try to persuade others. Babies want more milk, elementary school kids want to stay up late and teens want the car. Given the fact that we have been practicing persuasion for so many years, you would think that as adults we would be...
Getting from Ordinary to Extraordinary – The When, Where, How and Why to Improving the Way You Communicate!
People who are extraordinary communicators don’t start out that way. They work at getting better. They take communicating effectively seriously. They practice. They learn the When, Where, How and Why to improving the way they communicate. When: People who are fabulous...
Eliminating Verbal Static: Tips for Curing Filler Words
Filler words, such as “um,” “ah,” “like” and “ok,” represent verbal static or noise that your listeners have to filter out. The more fillers you have, the more difficult it is for your listeners to hear your message. Minimizing these annoying irritants will boost your...
Don’t Supersize Your Listeners
Presentations that change minds are not overly complex. They are simple with a limited number of key points. If you want to impress your listeners, don’t “supersize” the portion of information you give them. They aren’t that hungry. They will leave much of what you...
What Counts in the Influence Game
Robert Cialdini, the author of Weapons of Influence and The Psychology of Persuasion, is a leading expert in the area of influence and influencing. In his books, he identifies critical principles that generate desirable change. We have grouped his key points under...
Getting Serious about Trust? Some Tips on What Not to Do
Being a Trusted Advisor, in the eyes of many experts, is the Holy Grail. It’s what you should strive to become if you are selling a product or a service. It takes time and perseverance to develop such a relationship, but the rewards for both parties are enormous....
Learn the Secrets of the Pros
When that great opportunity finally comes along to make a presentation to a potential dream client, you want to be successful. The question many of us have is “What is the trick?” As simplistic as it sounds, the key is in adding value. The more clearly you can...
The Grave Digger’s Shift – What to Consider When Presenting Later in the Day!
Is your presentation scheduled for 3 p.m or even later? If so, you’re in the Grave Digger’s Shift. In fact, any time you speak in the afternoon, you run the risk of digging your own grave unless you are interesting and engaging. People are tired and typically have a...
How Strong is Your Core?
Every athlete knows that if you want to perform well, you have to have a strong core. They also know that the time to strengthen their core is not while running a marathon or playing 18 holes of golf. It needs to happen long before and gradually over time. The same is...
Promise Never to Commit these Presentation Crimes
They say there are three presentations we give: The one we planned to give, the one we actually gave, and the one we wished we would have given. A lot of us leave a presentation wishing for a “do-over.” What can destroy a good outcome are the following “Presentation...
Why I Simply Can’t Trust You
The aim of any presenter is to be trusted. Yet, time after time, listeners aren’t sold. Many even comment, “You know, there is something about that guy that I just can’t trust.” What you say and how you say it is critical to establishing trust. Albert Mehrabian,...
Presentations Are Out: Sharing Your Story Is In!
Customers are not crazy about formal presentations. They complain that presentations often seem prescriptive and downright boring. When surveyed, one of our clients said, “The last thing I need in my day is one more salesperson doing a dog and pony show. What happened...
Add Up to Real Value
When that great opportunity finally comes along to make a presentation to a potential dream client, you want to be successful. The question many of us have is “What is the trick?” As simplistic as it sounds, the key is in adding value. The more clearly you can...
Reach, Teach and Touch – 3 Requirements for Any Presenter
Selling your ideas isn’t easy, especially in today’s dynamic business climate. Listeners go from meeting to meeting. They are on information overload. Without Reaching, Teaching and Touching your listeners, it is likely your content will be overlooked. The question is...Connection is Everything
How you relate to the audience affects the outcome of the meeting. People more readily accept information and close business with those they like and trust. So how do you build a relationship and still get your points across? What creates a connection, first and...When You Can Only Influence
Robert Cialdini, the author of Weapons of Influence and The Psychology of Persuasion, is a leading expert in the area of influence and influencing. In his books, he identifies critical principles that generate desirable change. We have grouped his key points under...
What It Takes to be a Master Speaker
Malcolm Gladwell in his book Outliers says 10,000 hours is the magic number for true expertise. He sites examples of composers, basketball players, skaters, concert pianists, chess players and fiction writers who achieved greatness after 10,000 hours of hard practice....Cardinal Rule #1—End on Time
Repeat after me, it is not okay to end meetings late. When moderators say, “I am sorry we ended 15 minutes over time, but I hope you found it valuable,” it is not really all right. People have commitments. Sometimes, they are rushing to airports or to pick up children...Emotion—the Fast Lane to Motivating Listeners to Take Action
Can you remember a time when you attended a meeting, only to be lulled into an occasional listening mode because of one dull fact after another? Just like you, your listeners will tune out quickly if you don’t capture and hold their attention. After all, most business...Presenting—A Transference of Enthusiasm
Presenting your ideas so that people are motivated to take action requires a transfer of enthusiasm. From your first words, you must demonstrate you believe in what you say. You must show true gusto in your body language and voice. Anything less seems incongruous, and...Delivering Bad News Messages
The economic downturn has affected all businesses. Consequently, many of us are now in the position of delivering bad news messages. It is not easy, but the way that message is communicated is critical. It leaves a lasting impression of you and the company. People who...Selling Yourself in A Down Economy
As the economy continues to plummet, businesses weigh every internal and external decision very carefully. To save money internally, decision-makers are looking closely at their own headcount. Non-essential jobs and marginal performers are being eliminated quickly....- 5 Content Tips That Drive Action
Convincing people to act on your ideas is an art. If you are one of the people who approach preparing content by opening PowerPoint, this newsletter is for you. What follows are five content tips that will help you to create high impact presentations. On the surface, they may seem too simplistic. The reality is that most people overlook these pointers and end up with content that is confusing or uninspiring.
- Feedback—What Are the Problems
George Bernard Shaw said the problem with communication is the illusion that what has been said has been understood and accepted. People are often given “suggestions” on how to do their jobs faster, better, or cheaper. Yet, many of those suggestions fall on deaf ears. For those of us in a management or supervisory role, […]
- How to Connect with Your Listeners
Most people feel they are unique. Before they can be receptive to your ideas or recommendations, they need to know you “get them.” As you speak to any individual or group, apply or link your points to the things they care about- and do it often! Do it at the beginning, middle and end of your conversation or presentation. Here are some tips and examples.
- Managing the Jitters
Presenting your ideas to the boss is a double edged sword. On the one hand, it’s an opportunity to show the boss you know your stuff and you are someone with real potential. On the other hand, if you don’t do a good job or your boss is disappointed with your message, you may forever be sitting on the sidelines. The anticipation of speaking to an executive might make anyone anxious and unable to perform at their best. It is essential that you harness those nervous jitters
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