Had a great time presenting my Speak Up and Stand Out public speaking workshop this morning. We’ll be offering another session July 22 and presenting another in conjunction with the Phoenix Business Journal on July 27. Check out our Events page for details.
Our July 8 Speak Up and Stand Out workshop is full and we are no longer taking reservations but we still have spots left in the July 22 public speaking workshop. The workshops are free but you must reserve a spot. To ensure personal attention, the workshops are limited to 10 participants.
Start your journey to public speaking success by signing up for our July 2 session today!
The advertisement for our Speak Up and Stand Out public speaking workshop appeared in today’s Phoenix Business Journal. You can register for the workshop here. We’ll cover a variety of public speaking and business presentation skills. Be sure to use this promo code to get a 25% discount: PHBB. Hope to see you there!
In today’s fiercely competitive business climate, how well you present yourself can make the difference in getting ahead or going home. When it comes to winning a new client, getting a project approved, or closing the deal, the smallest things can make the biggest difference. You don’t want to blend in you want to stand out!
From shaking hands, exchanging business cards to storytelling these all have a powerful impression on how people perceive you. Most people underestimate the importance of these interactions and just get by. But by knowing a few simple secrets, you can turn that around.
You can learn these skills in our Speak Up and Stand Out workshop being presented in conjunction with the Phoenix Business Journal on July 27, from 11:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. at the Scottsdale Chamber of Commerce.
In this highly interactive workshop, you will master the basics of:
Using your body language to influence and include
Using storytelling in presentations to turn heads and win hearts
Introducing yourself to make a great first impression
Get your calendars out, it’s a busy couple of months ahead. I have a speaking gig and a book signing in San Francisco, and several workshops and a talk coming up for Phoenix area residents.
As part of my corporate communication consulting business, I will co-present a talk on intranet best practices at the Advanced Learning Institute’s Digital Workplace and Intranet Summit in San Francisco on June 22. I’ll also sign copies of my book Maximizing Internal Communication at the summit. I’m pleased to say that my book is the No. 1 book on Amazon that details how large companies can communicate more effectively with their employees. It’s even being used by Jame Madison University in an advanced level communication course.
Back in Phoenix, I’ll present a workshop on crisis communication best practices on June 28. This session is geared to public information officers and others who serve as spokespeople for organizations, but it is open to anyone with an interest in this unique form of public speaking. It’s free but seating is limited to 20, so you must RSVP.
And if that weren’t enough, I’ll be teaching two public speaking classes and a non-fiction writing course at The Art Institute of Phoenix this summer. Yep, it keeps me busy and it keeps me young. I love the creative students and I think I learn as much from them as they do from me.
You can find all of our events listed on our Events Page. I look forward to meeting you at one.
As busy as it is, I still have plenty of room for you! Please remember that I’m available for personal coaching sessions or to do a speech or a workshop that is customized for your organization. Referrals are my lifeblood and I appreciate all your support. Here’s wishing you a fantastic summer!
Communication is, by definition, a two-way process and listening is a crucial skill to being successful in your business and your personal life. We need to be able to listen well when communicating with clients, customers, and co-workers, and they need to know that they were heard.
Interested vs. Interesting
Between talking and listening, the latter is more difficult and, in my opinion, more important. Many of us don’t listen to understand; we listen to be understood. Presentation coach Pam Chambers, from whom I’ve learned so much, points out that in networking situations we don’t need to be the most interesting person in the room, we need to be the most interested person in the room.
In our Listen Up and Stand Out workshop, we focus on enhancing active listening skills. Being a good listener allows you to be a better public speaker and presenter and it certainly makes you stand out from those who don’t listen.
Simple Listening Formulas
To be a better listener, try this simple cyclical formula:
Ask for more information. “So, tell me more about that.”
Clarify or rephrase what you heard. “Wow. That’s really cool! So you [rephrase what you were just told].”
Asking for more information uncovers details that are often crucial to understanding. Clarifying proves you were listening and ensures you got it right.
For problem resolution, we repeat the two steps and add a third. It goes like this:
Ask for more information. “So, tell me more about that.”
Clarify or rephrase what you heard. “So, if I’m hearing you correctly, you’re saying [rephrase what you were just told].”
“So what if we tried [insert solution]. Would that work for you?
Getting to ‘Yes’ Is the Goal
Getting agreement is the goal. But if you don’t, the cycle continues until the other part finally says “yes.” Here’s how to continue the cycle: “So tell me more about why that doesn’t work for you?” … “Oh, I see. That doesn’t work for you because [rephrase what you were just told].” “So how about instead we [insert solution]. Would that work for you?” And so on. Check out this video to see this formula in action: The Angry Patient.
Some people are better listeners than others. Some have to work very hard at it. It doesn’t come naturally for all of us. But the good news is, with a simple formula and a lot of practice, you can become a better listener and thus become a better communicator.
Give the formulas a try and let us know how it goes. We’d love to hear from you!
You’re about to make a persuasive presentation to a cross-functional task team of your peers in a conference room with a long rectangular table. Quick – where’s the best place to sit?
The head of the table you say?
Think again.
The head of the table is great for a “command-and-control” style directive, but your persuasive speech to your peers will be more effective if it is delivered as an “influence-and-include” presentation.
That means a seat in the middle of the table is your best position. The head of the table can only directly influence the people in the two seats closest to them. But the middle position can directly influence those seated on either side plus two to four people seated across from them.
From the middle position, you can more effectively use your tone subtleties, body language, eye contact and charisma to make connections and draw more people over to your point of view.
Your middle seat position also supports powerful non-verbal messages that you want to send to other meeting participants. It says that you are part of the team, you are approachable, you are open to other points of view, and that you are a collaborator. And when trying to win over your colleagues, those are pretty good messages to send.
Handshakes have been in the news a lot lately as President Trump meets with world leaders. In these interactions, there has been lots of talk about who was dominant, who was awkward, and who got it right.
Handshakes do make a difference. They set a tone for a conversation and how you do your handshake can say a lot about you. A handshake can make or break the first impression someone has of you. Because handshakes are a conscious exertion of body language and how we present ourselves, they are an important part of public speaking. And in today’s fiercely competitive business climate, how well you present yourself can make the difference in getting ahead or going home. So to succeed, it’s important that we do this basic business interaction correctly.
In the video clip below, Paul Barton shows how to do a handshake that exudes confidence and a willingness to partner with someone. Both of those qualities are crucial in most interpersonal and business settings. A proper handshake helps you send the messages you’re intending to send and it helps you to stand out in the minds of your customers, clients and business partners. So go on — shake it up!
Few of us are ever going to find ourselves at a podium ready to deliver a major speech to thousands of people. But all of us communicate every day in countless ways. How well we communicate in everyday situations makes a big difference in how successful we are in our professional and personal lives. Studies show that communication is the No. 1 business skill for business leaders.
If you think about it, life is a series of presentations. You are always presenting yourself. Most of your presentations are unscripted and most of them are intended to be persuasive. You want to make a favorable impression and you want your audience to see things your way. Making a good impression starts with the basics — things like shaking hands, introducing yourself, and exchanging business cards. The art of persuasion is often best done in the form of storytelling, perhaps the most powerful way to communicate.
When done correctly, everyday business interactions can have a powerful effect. But few people have ever been taught how to master these simple but powerful business basics. And most people underestimate the importance of these interactions and settle for “good enough.” As a result, their names are quickly forgotten, their business cards get tossed away, and their poorly constructed stories are ignored.
However, mastering ordinary business situations can have extraordinary results on your career. This blog, and the workshops and personal coaching sessions we offer are designed to help you gain the confidence to speak up and discover the skills to stand out in all situations. Our hope is to create a supportive community here where we can learn from each other and cheer each other on. We’ll offer easy-to-remember tips, tricks, and techniques that you can apply right away. In return, we want to hear your comments, suggestions, and personal experiences. Please join us by signing up for our email list. This just might be a small start to something big!