Tag Archives: leader

You can Learn a lot just Practicing Your Speech

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I have been having information chats with folks about workshops- if they had never done a workshop and could ask an expert anything what would they ask? A friend had in interesting comment, she wouldn’t ask anything. She would want someone to tell her that when she practices she needs to stand up.

She (let’s call her D) knew she should practice what she was going to say- KUDOS! And D did practice. But she practiced while sitting at a conference table. D learned when delivering the information that standing is a completely different energy.

It is. Standing changes the way you project, changes your confidence, and forces you to concentrate more fully on what you are supposed to be saying. Try it sometime. Sit at your desk and read something out loud from the Internet.

Now, stand up, read the same information. Unless you are practiced at speaking dramatically over the phone, I am willing to bet the standing version sounds a whole lot more exciting. You may find yourself gesturing or even moving.

Just standing up to practice takes more energy than sitting. If I am feeling really lazy I will sometimes practices presentations sitting at my desk.  And to really get the feel of what I am saying – to ferret out the gestures and dramatic moments, to find the pieces that cry out for audience interaction, clarification or a whole rewrite- standing allows me to feel every aspect of what I am saying.  It is no longer only a cerebral activity. It becomes visceral.

Shouldn’t speaking be a visceral experience for your audience (or participants)? The more emotionally involved they are the more they will remember, the more engaged they are, and they have an experience instead of just a moment listening to some guy at the front of the room.

How do you practice? (Share in comments)

What do you do when your speech time is cut in half?

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My time wasn’t cut in half- 60 minutes turned into 40.  What do you do?

Here’s what you don’t do

  • Don’t keep everyone late simply because your content is sooooo fantastic they simply must hear it- that is a sure fire way to annoy folks and help them forget all of the positive thoughts they had about you and your content
  • Don’t  *itch, and grip and moan to the audience about how you have to rethink things- they don’t care, nor should they. In a perfect world they wouldn’t even know your time was cut short.
  • Don’t talk really fast just so you can get through it all.
  •  Don’t cut a question(s) short during the Q&A simply because you want to hurry up and get to the fantastic close you’ve been working on for 2 weeks.

Your audience still needs to feel like the most important person in the world while you are speaking to them.  (I said person on purpose- you are having a conversation with each individual audience member.)

This scenario is why it is so important to really know your content. The better you know it the easier it is to think on the fly- remove pieces that don’t impact the overall content while including the most impactful points.

Because you don’t want to overwhelm your audience you should remember to eliminate some points altogether. Instead of putting too much information in to 40 minutes, include fewer points with a clear explanation for each.

Approach each point like you only had 40 minutes to begin with- decide to keep it or jettison it. Maybe you only include 1 story or 1 example instead of the 3 you had planned.

Watch your audience, they will tell you if you are providing too much information too quickly. We have all seen that glazed look (of course, not during a speech WE gave!).  Stop and breathe- maybe you didn’t realize how fast you were going.

The bottom line is even if there is no extension cord for the PowerPoint, the room is 20 degrees too hot and you only have 20 minutes instead of 60 you can still pull off a speech that is valuable to the audience. That really is the goal- providing value. Practice and preparation are the keys to pulling off that great speech in the worst of circumstances.

Is there always something to learn? Even for the expert?

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I did it. I got a coach. Why? Cause I don’t know what I don’t know.

I do know that if I want to continue to provide high value to my clients and to grow the business I need to have someone in my corner pushing me just like I do with my clients.

I know that for most of us a coach is a big commitment – you need to invest time and money to get the most out of your experience. Commitment by investment. I see it with my clients all of the time. You hear big time coaches and consultants talk about it. The more you pay the more committed you are to doing the work and reaching your goals.

Think about how many FREE teleseminars, articles, ebooks… you have gotten in the last year. How many have you actually used or even opened up!  Now think about the $3,000 program you purchased last fall. I bet you did everything that program suggested and got really great results. Commitment by investment.

Everyone has their investment threshold. Some folks need to spend $100 and others $10,000 before they feel like the program/coach/consultant is valuable enough that they will actually do the work.

It doesn’t matter how much it costs- no one is going to do the work for you. At the end of the day it all comes down to personal responsibility and how much you want to make the changes or reach the goals you are talking about.

I sometimes hear people say “Well, I don’t need to learn anymore about X or Y. I’ve been doing it for years, I’m good at it.” I’m sure you are. I’ve never met anyone that could not learn something. Even masters will tell you there is always something t o learn.

It becomes a question of how willing are you to learn;? To admit there might be just one more thing, one more bit that can make you even better at what you do.  Additional coaching doesn’t take anything away from the expert. I have found that people look up to others who continue to grow- if nothing else it makes the expert seem human, which builds rapport with their audience.

Let me know how you are growing by adding your comments.

7 Tips for Starting 2012 with a Bang

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My plate is full and it is wonderful! After a few days off I am again trying to prioritize too many deadlines all at once. I am usually pretty good with deadlines but…. One of my projects is causing lots of frustration and taking huge amounts of time that I had planned on spending on other projects with deadlines.

Enough of my kvetching- what do I do about this?! Well, I have outsourced some of the work. Work I normally do on my own I am outsourcing to others who can do it just as well (and faster).

I am bringing on an intern to handle some administrative work. Interns are the hidden gems out there. They can provide a few hours of assistance every week, learn about your business and all you have to do is write a letter of recommendation.

I have reassessed how I prioritize my workflow. It seems to be paying off. Tasks are getting done quickly, I am able to brush off the frustration of one project when I shift gears to another project.

If you find yourself a little overwhelmed with everything you need to do to start this year right follow these steps:

  1. Prioritize revenue generating items first- including your client work- If some of them have a long lead time to completion set time aside to work on low hanging fruit- revenue generators that happen quickly so the revenue is flowing- while you are working on the long lead time items
  2. Make sure you are building revenue generators into your speeches- if you are not certain how work with a public speaking coach that can help you
  3. Take advantage of your affiliate partnerships and joint ventures to create passive income
  4. Work on building your list- an active list combined with targeted products will pump up your passive income- Stay in touch with your list regularly- even if it is only 2 times a month, it doesn’t have to be a long newsletter, a short ‘Hello here’s what I’m up to’ with 2 or 3 tips and a call to action will do the trick
  5. Keep growing- with all of the other demands mastering your topic can seem like it is not important. Continuing education will keep your mind sharp, ensure you are always adding new information to your work and keep you energized. Set a little bit of time aside each week- even 30 minutes on a weekend is valuable.
  6. Take care of yourself- get sleep, exercise, eat right…..
  7. Now do everything else.

I know- looks impossible but it’s not. A little bit of time every day and things will be completed. If you see progress you will keep moving.

Share what you are doing to start your 2012 in the comments.

What to do when your presentation imitates life

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I tell a story about how I first realized that I loved public speaking. It’s not one of those feel good everything went perfectly stories. It is an everything went horribly wrong and yet, I felt exhilarated stories.

In my story the PowerPoint I am using suddenly goes black- no projection at all. Yesterday while presenting to a group of business folks my PowerPoint did exactly that. Stopped working completely. My back was to the screen so I had no idea until someone pointed out that my life was imitating my story.

I had to fall back on the training I received when I first started speaking to successful navigate through the rest of my speech. Too often we ‘forget’ or discount that training because we are ‘seasoned’ or (let’s face it) lazy.

Here are the keys that saved that presentation:

  • Practice, practice, practice – few people like to hear it but practice does get you through the rough stuff, I knew what I wanted to say, when I wanted to say it, and how I wanted to do it, I didn’t need the slides to remind or guide me (Thank you! to the first person that ever helped me put together a presentation!)
  • Know your topic- it is not the same thing as practice. When you practice you include delivery cues, pauses for effect, gestures. Knowing your topic means you know which stories pertain to which point and how, exactly what content you are sharing about a point and what is best left for another day. When you know your topic and your timing you don’t need the event planner to tell you there are only 5 minutes left, you already have that internal clock running.
  • Always bring your notes to the stage with you- written out in long hand, bullet point, whatever works for you. In this case I was moving around the room when I learned the slides were down, but I knew my notes were there. If I needed a reference to continue I had it and there is comfort just knowing you have a backup.
  • Collateral (handouts for the audience)- I always provide the audience with a handout. Generally something they can take notes on. My audience was not left staring at a blank screen with no visual guidance and, in a worst-case scenario, I had something I could use as a reference. Handouts are well worth the extra 10 minutes to create them and the time to print them. They are a great tool for visual and kinesthetic learners.

None of this is rocket science and for those of us that always want to ‘be prepared’ it just makes sense. But when I was early in the process of learning the art of public speaking… I didn’t know what I didn’t know. I am grateful to the mentors that pointed out these simple and relevant strategies.

C Corp., S Corp, B Corp., LLC…. Wait, B Corp.?

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I am sitting outside a Starbucks and there are 3 cars that have been running for more than 5 minutes with no one in them. I find it annoying for several reasons- petrol is not a renewable resource (not really), pollutants are spewing into the atmosphere- the owners are…where?

Imagine how much fuel could be saved in one week if everyone just turned off their car.

Off of my soap box…..

Did you know there is a B corporation designation?

A B corporation uses the power of business to solve environmental and social problems. Basically, they are environmentally and socially conscious businesses that actively work to positively impact their environment (social and natural). A staffing service I work with just received their designation. It is not as easy as just choosing to be a C or S corporation.

Now there is a business designation that can reflect your personal conscience if you want it to. I would not be surprised if, as more folks learn about B corporations, they try to purchase exclusively from B corporations.

Something to consider as you set up a new corporation or look at re-designating an existing business.

Build Rapport with Teenagers?

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I find myself asking how I relate to those who are not anything like me? Then I realize that really is not fair.

  • They live in the same country I do
  • They speak English
  • They are all in high school (I was too- 20 years ago)
  • They are teenagers (I was too- long ago)

Maybe we are not that different after all.

It is just perspective- the times are different yet many of their ‘struggles’ as teenagers are the same as mine were. They may not see it that way- I probably wouldn’t have when I was a teenager.

I spoke at a local career day to a group of senior high school students. Building rapport is just as important in that situation as it is for any other speech.  Rapport is an often forgotten piece of public speaking.

Know your audience.  Find ways in which you are similar. Use those similarities and common situations to help illustrate points.  For instance, I was speaking to an English class and had been asked to address how important language and grammar are in my business life. The students don’t necessarily relate to my business life. In addition to that information, I shared a story about a college football player and the impact his language had on the audience perception of him.  That they could relate too – they are off to college or technical school next year and very focused on the whole college experience.

It is easy to speak to your target market- it is the other groups that force you to stretch and push your boundaries. Step out of your comfort zone and build rapport with groups outside of your target market. Stretching those muscles will increase your ability to build rapport with any audience.

Language Impacts Your Credibility

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Do you really think about language? How you use language and grammar skills impact your business.

Suppose if you are working at a cash register as long as you can be understood and your customer service skills are good language isn’t a great concern. For everyone running a business, particularly an information or service business, language become very important.

Your ability to use grammar and language will change the way people perceive you. Send an email with grammar errors everywhere and people will question your credibility and expertise. What you have said won’t matter if people have to wade through poorly constructed sentences and content with no logical order.

This is particularly true of leaders. A person in a leadership position must have excellent language and grammar skills. Don’t think it matters? Here’s just one example:

A networking group that had been growing by 2 or 3 people every month changed leadership. The new leader had very poor language skills- Her written and verbal sentence structure was incorrect, she used words incorrectly and used the wrong words in places  (there vs. their). The perception is that she is not a strong or credible leader- visitors have not joined the group because of they don’t trust the leadership and members are leaving the group for the same reason.

Do I need to say it? Spell check!

I work with people who need help writing their speeches because they have difficulty putting their ideas into logical order. Folks struggle with transitions.

Think about what you are writing and saying. If you need help, get it. It matters in more ways than you realize.

You have 2 months to reach Your 2011 goals

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Have you started your 2012 business plan yet? More importantly, have you accomplished what you wanted to in 2011?

Check your business plan or your calendar (whatever you use for planning) – what have you accomplished in 2011? Are there still things you want to do? Or that you have not done yet?

You still have 2 months to accomplish your goals. Don’t throw in the towel because the list seems too long. Pick 2 (two) or 3 (three) you think you can do and plan on completing them before December 31.

To get started make a list of what you need to do to achieve that first goal.

Get out your calendar and put those tasks on it. Create a realistic timeline to achieve the goal. Do that today.

Next start on the first task.

Finished that first task? Start the second. Keep moving through the list of tasks until you have reached your goal!

Procrastination getting in the way? Think about it like this- if you don’t start you will never finish and you know you deserve better than that. Don’t let yourself down; keep the business moving forward.

 

6 Tips to Keep High School and Middle School Students Interested in Your Presentation

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You have the opportunity to speak to a group of high school and middle school students! How are you going to keep their attention for 45 minutes?

You know they never seem to be still for a moment and even when they are they are listening to their MP3 player and on their PS3 at the same time. Here are 6 tips to keep your students interested.

  • Use multiple presentation mediums- use audio, video and engage them in discussion all in the same presentation, give them a worksheet to complete, lecture for only short amounts of time, actively engage their brains
  • Keep the content moving fast- that is what they are used to and it will keep them interested, don’t focus on a specific point for too long
  • Talk to them- not at them, not as the all-knowing adult
  • Make sure all of your content takes into account their age and experience level- don’t talk about Jimmy Carter, they have no context for who he was, use content they are comfortable with even if you aren’t completely; be specific about your ideas – the leaps of logic we make they may not only because of the difference in age and experience
  • Be willing to flex with them- they may move in a slightly different direction than you originally planned and that is OK, find the connections and you will get them going in the right direction
  • Ignore the fidgety, attention seekers- there is always one, and as long as they aren’t disrupting the entire group let them fidget and talk to themselves; remember it is not about you, focus on everyone else in the room

I presented to 16 high school and middle schoolers last week and kept their attention. Using all of these tips I listed, we had a productive, rewarding discussion- that worked for all of us. Even Mr. Fidget was paying attention.

Good luck!