Imagine if these movies had started differently. “In a past scenario, the troop strength of corrupt military-industrial complex had a 500-to-1 equipment advantage over a small but vocal group of dissidents…as you can see in this bar chart on my PowerPoint slide.”  Movies show us the power of storytelling to engage and persuade people, don’t they? I got a reminder of this from a great interview with screenwriter and creative writing teacher Robert McKee on Screenwriting for Executives. Whether your interest is in sales presentation, public speaking or simply team communications, this Hollywood advice applies to you.

Of course, storytelling doesn’t replace facts and logic. Its role is to help bring your information to life and make it more persuasive. It helps people understand complex ideas. It inspires, motivates – and gets remembered.

So how do you start developing the plot line of your next presentation? Storytelling is built on examples, metaphors and analogies. Is your story about the battle for market share? Then the hero may be you and your department. Maybe there’s a metaphorical “damsel in distress” who was rescued by the new training in customer service. Or, perhaps you’re explaining major management changes. Is the analogy the exploration of an undiscovered planet? Or getting a hard-case kid onto the championship football team? Or like the two little nuns who made all the difference when they yanked the carburetor out of the Nazis’ chase car in The Sound of Music? Now that’s a story about innovation and initiative!

Once you’ve decided the plot of your story, how do you put it all together? Here are a few speaking tips:

• Use powerful, concrete words and phrases. For example, in a sales presentation, it’s easy to talk about a new product “providing increased effectiveness.”  But it’s more compelling to talk about “no more Saturday catch-up work” or “make a difference to three more people every day.”
• Laughter is good medicine.  It helps people remember. It lightens the weight of a tough message. Of course, make sure it’s relevant and appropriate.
• Think visually. This isn’t radio – you’re on the big screen. What would be a great prop to convey your message?  A black hat and a white hat?  A letter from a customer? A tiny pebble, a melted DVD, your grandfather’s pocket watch, the contents of your organization’s lost and found box?  Extra credit: make this the only visual in your PowerPoint – or replace it all together.

Presenting your ideas in the form of a story is an emotionally powerful way of sharing the picture you have in your mind’s eye with your listener. If you and your listener are seeing the same picture then you have truly succeeded in conveying your message. 

Image by David Sandell

In part one

One of the points I mentioned before was that people want to know why a change is taking place. It’s easy to think about the more literal response to that question. “It will save money.” “It will help us respond faster.”  “It will open up a new market.” Or, in these tough times, the answer is often, “It’ll help us hang on until the economy turns around.” Those answers aren’t enough. They aren’t enough to qualm fears. They aren’t enough to build buy-in. They aren’t enough to inspire belief and action.

Getting to positive change requires communication skills, powered by leadership skills. Let me explain. All of us are rational and emotional beings – and we bring both those outlooks to the workplace. Transformational leadership requires us to connect with both. The rational mind responds to goals. The emotional mind responds to vision. The two must be interconnected and both must be communicated for successful change. Why?  

• Goals appeal to our intellect. Vision engages us. Goals tell us what we need to do, what the changes will require of us. But that’s just the beginning. Vision brings meaning to the change, captures our imagination for the good that could come from it. 
• Goals give us timeframes and results. Vision shows us our future. Always, the logical mind wants and needs the specifics of goals. Vision helps us soar above the everyday to see the big-picture possibilities.
• Goals drive performance. Vision inspires. We want to understand the standards by which we’ll be measured and rewarded. But vision asks us to think for ourselves and empowers us to find ways to expand upon it.
• Goals solve problems. Vision opens possibilities. For example, goals say, “Reduce customer wait time by 20%”.  Vision says, “Delight customers by easing the stress of their time-crunched days.” 
• Goals are concrete, written. Vision is a living story to be internalized. One you pull up and access on your computer. The other you carry in your mind.

Chances are, you already have skills and training in goal-setting. So, I want to focus on visioning here. Where do you start? You’ll need to do the same thing you’re going to be asking your team to do. Think beyond the current actions to the future.  What does “good” look like? What will a day be like when the change is in full force? What will be the response from customers? How will they write the article on your success in the Harvard Business Review? Gather those mental images for your vision story. Then think about how you want to characterize the vision. Are you on a mission? Is it a battle? A quest? Is it a marathon or a sprint? Is it art or science? Are you creating or conquering? Now build your thoughts into your story, filling it out with details that tie it to the everyday experience. 

Here’s a crucial reminder. Your goals – and especially your vision – may be most important when the changes you’re facing are triggered by “bad” news. Downsizing, financial reorganization or the departure of a key leader can scar a company’s performance for a very long time if not approached correctly. Without being a Pollyanna, you need to focus on the positive future. Not the pain, but the gain. Try to set goals within a positive framework. Define your vision, not in terms of loss, but of the open door. Once you have your messages in place, communicate them often, in as many ways as you can. Update the vision with success stories. Share goals reached. And, when necessary, recalibrate. 

Change is a reality in today’s world. To be a true leader you need to go beyond managing change to empowering it.

Image by David Reece

Be prepared with clear expectations.

Claire and I were in a boat called a shredder. It has two side tubes that you sit on, with your feet on the “floor” of the boat. With Claire on one side and me on the other, we paddled our way down the river. Claire has boated on the Gauley and New Rivers for 25 years. She guided rafting trips for many of those years, so she knows the twists and turns well. She also knows the power of the rapids—and the danger that goes with it. With that knowledge comes an intense respect for the river—and a lot of dread too.

Me? My boating has been filled with joy and excitement—and total ignorance. I had never been thrown out of a raft and forced to swim through a rapid. Until you do, you have not truly experienced the full impact of a white water river trip, so you might say my brain had only tapped into the positive side of rafting.

My cautious sister, on the other hand, has the negative side of rafting imbedded in her brain. She has swum most of the challenging rapids, and she knows what it’s like to get thrown out of a boat when you least expect it. Boulders and swirling eddies await the unwary swimmer. On that beautiful day, when I looked over at Claire, she would be staring downstream . . . holding her breath. When I looked downstream, it didn’t look all that dreadful to me.

When I asked what was up, she said, “Can’t you hear that?” The sound was the next rapid coming up. This seemed like more fun and excitement to me. For Claire, however, it signaled time to think about what was ahead and how to navigate a rapid that she knew well, but that might have a surprise or two in store. (This is what made my sister a sought-after rafting guide. She knew what she was doing and didn’t take unnecessary chances.)

Turn negatives into positives

On that glorious day of rafting, I did have my first rapid swim. I got thrown out of the boat so fast that I didn’t have time to worry about what might happen to me in the water. The worst part was the egg on my shin where my leg hit a boulder. But I didn’t die. I popped up downstream, got back into the boat and thought, Excellent, now I don’t need to worry about swimming again because I just did. If and when it happens again, I will handle it.

How do you want to move through your life? Check in and monitor your thoughts. Are they positive or negative? Do you want to avoid the experiences of life because of what might happen? Or do you want to enjoy the excitement of what’s coming around the bend? My choice is to deal with what is at hand, and deal with what might happen when it happens. If I spend my life in dread, and the dreadful things don’t happen, what an enormous waste of time. I would much rather be joyful.

Make your choice

How you move through your world can be joyous or full of dread. Experience and knowledge is powerful. It will make you a great boater, as long as it doesn’t paralyze you. My sister doesn’t stop boating because of what might happen. She has too much skill for that. She just needs a gentle reminder to keep breathing.

VoicePro has been called in by numerous clients to help manage change initiatives.  A mistake I see over and over again is that communication is an afterthought. 

Sometimes the call to VoicePro comes when there’s been a breakdown in the system – reduced productivity, high turnover or other problems.  In response to my question about a communications plan, I often hear, “We had a meeting and sent out a memo.”  That’s simply not enough.

People need more than that for change to be truly understood and accepted, and for the change to have the full positive force you intend.  It’s so important that I’m going to devote a couple of these posts to the issues you’ll face and how to prepare for them.

Let’s start with an example to illustrate my point. I participated in a training exercise a few years ago in which the participants were broken into one of two groups – the “employers” and the “employees.” I was an employee.  Unbeknownst to us employees, part of the exercise for the employers was to NOT communicate with us, but only to let us have access to their public news releases.  Even in a small group of pretend employees, complete strangers together for a 3-hour “game” on a Tuesday morning, we became suspicious and confrontational, doubting our employers wisdom and motives.  Amazing – and eye opening.  

Think of change management as facilitative leadership. How can you help assure the change you’re undertaking is going to achieve the hoped-for results?  Here are some things to keep in mind in your communications plan.

• Over-communicate.  Create a message calendar to cover 3-6 months of the change process.  Start early to let people know what’s coming.  Include a kick-off communication at the start of the change.  Then follow through with regular updates. 
• Explain why.  People respond more positively when they know why a change is happening.  Even if it’s bad news generated by difficulty, trust your team to take on a challenge when they know what the stakes are and how they can make a difference.  And don’t assume that the need for a “simple” or “good” change is obvious. Change always brings some discomfort or inconvenience. Help people understand how learning a new sales and marketing system will help them better serve customers and grow the business.
• Listen.  You can’t possibly predict all the questions and concerns your team will have – that’s the nature of the human spirit.  You need to offer frequent opportunities for people to ask questions.  Take those questions seriously and provide serious answers.  Be sure to plan for Q&A throughout the process; issues are certain to arise as you go along.
• Use different communication methods.  Kick-off meetings, newsletters, video, focus groups, training sessions.  Each one reaches people in different ways and invites different (and important) feedback opportunities.
• Reach out to key groups.  You know which groups are most affected and where the fulcrum points are.  Losing these key people can hobble your organization for months. Use change as a team building exercise.
• Involve the whole organization.  Even when a change targets a small group, you may want to widen the communications audience.  Why?  First, there’s a ripple effect to change.  Something new in the accounting department can cause headaches or concerns to anyone who interacts with them.  Plus, organization-wide communication can help control gossip and the fear that goes with it.

Change isn’t just about systems or organization charts, payroll numbers or business plans.  It’s about the people who will implement it, live with it, work with it.  If your want your change to be a positive one, remember make people a part of it.  And communication is the key.

Image by Veri’s kleiner Winkel

I often find myself in this trap…wondering, What if I do it wrong? or How am I supposed to do this?

Have you ever thought that maybe, just maybe, you’re doing it exactly the way you should be? Because, if you did everything right the first time, you’d never learn anything new. And who is defining the right way? What if your way is the right way?

 Sue Thomas is the owner of MAP.  She uses horses to teach people about leadership skills, collaboration, effective communication and team building. One morning, I was in her pasture with three horses and three other people to learn some new approaches to managing. My task, with rope harness in hand, was to go get Boss, a large, black gelding, and lead him back to Sue.

Now, I love animals and I am not particularly afraid of horses. So this was no big deal, right? I just needed to go and get him. But as I found myself walking towards Boss, I began to get nervous because the trap had taken hold. Was I going to do it right. What if I did it wrong? What if I looked foolish in front of the others?

When I got to Boss, I looped the rope around his neck and said, “C’mon big guy,” and walked back over to Sue. My legs were shaking so badly I could hardly walk. And I was so worried about doing it right that I couldn’t enjoy my connection with this big, wonderful horse. Yet I had successfully accomplished my task. So, what is my point in all this? My fear of being inadequate very nearly got in the way of my success. I was getting in my own way.

What thoughts do you have that get in your way? Try this:

• Set a clear goal. If you don’t know what you need to accomplish, it’s hard to clarify your approach. I needed to get Boss and bring him back. This was very clear for me.
• Tell yourself, until you actually believe it, that your way is the right way. You can approach a task quite differently from others and still be successful. You may even experience something new and different that surprises you. If I had taken this approach with Boss, I would have found joy in my accomplishment rather than feeling frustration and pain.
• Take comfort in the fact that, most of the time, other people aren’t aware of your mental chatter and how it can undo you. The feedback I received from the others in the pasture was that I looked confident, comfortable and that I made the process look easy. They had no idea my knees were buckling under me.

When you are faced with something new and challenging, give yourself permission to do it wrong. Then enjoy the process of learning instead of beating yourself up over it. My lesson learned – I don’t need to be like everyone else. I can be different, which makes me unique. My knees can definitely support that.

You have just witnessed big-time small talk.  And that same scenario is true for all of us. A presentation starts long before people sit down at the conference room table.  The small talk at the beginning of a meeting – and for the weeks and months before that –establishes your personal and professional presence.  Your self-confidence shows and conveys that you’re comfortable, approachable and self-aware.  So in a way, small talk is one of the most important communications skills and sales presentation skills.   Certainly, it’s one of the defining characteristics of executive presence.

Even if you’re not making a major presentation, the ability to comfortably handle coffee-room small talk with your managers, peers and reports builds your credibility. It’s one of the leadership skills that builds trust in you and your abilities to connect, adapt and meet the world with confidence.

While some people seem to be natural at small talk, most of us need a little coaching and practice.  Even the people on TV have handlers who prep them and help them develop talking points.  Here’s a little small talk primer for all of us.

Prepare before you go. 

Brush up on local happenings or light news.  I know one woman who always skims the sports pages so she’s able to make small talk with her male clients. Read through a popular culture magazine for some timely topics. What are the reviews of a recent movie?  Check the New York Times best-seller list.  Restaurant reviews.  Even a recent news story – just avoid controversial topics or politics. 

Make business meetings work. 

 The small-talk time should be brief. Your goal is to establish rapport before getting started, priming everyone for a positive meeting. You might want to comment on the building or ask about the facility.  Notice an award or trophy.  You may also want to mention a colleague you have in common through work or your extracurricular life, if appropriate.

Networking events: relationships that get down to business.

All the topics for a business meeting are appropriate for networking events.  In addition, you may be able to chat about the purpose of the event.  Is it a fundraiser?  Talk about your and your conversation mate’s connection to the event.  You can share professional information (“What do you do when you’re not raising funds for the Cancer Society?”).   And, believe it or not, the weather is almost always a good place to start.

By the way, the goal of a networking event isn’t to build the fattest stack of business cards.  It’s about starting a relationship, so less may be more.  Make a genuine connection with someone, then exchange business cards as appropriate.

Ask a question.  Then really listen.

It’s what the teen magazines said about meeting people at your first high school dance.  And it’s still true today. Ask a question and you make a connection. Plus, you’re likely to uncover topics to keep the conversation going. 

Be sure you’re really listening, too.  Others sense whether you’re being genuine or just going through the motions.  You know the people who ask a question, then look past your left ear for their next target? Don’t be one of them.  Really listening means responding and having a dialog. It conveys authenticity and gives you a basis for future conversations. 

Feeling shy?  Breathe.  And smile.

Stand with an open posture and breathe deeply. A deep breath helps you relax, focus and smile.  If meeting people makes you nervous maybe the meeting organizer or the event host can introduce you to a few people to help break the ice. If you’re the person in charge, make that effort for others.  Some people get over their butterflies by setting a goal for the number of new contacts to make, and then make a game out of achieving it. Sounds less intimidating, doesn’t it?

Image by Pogorita

The fact is, people long for goals that reach farther and demand more. Imagine that. People want to take on big goals, difficult goals. Is that you? Your team? I’ll bet it is. We seem to be longing to accomplish something important and valuable.

The research then goes on to discuss eight make-or-break factors that are predictors of whether goals are going to help people actually achieve great things. Here are three of them. You probably don’t have to be a professional in leadership development and teambuilding to know they would be on the list:

• I will need to learn new skills

There’s no question that new goals require new skills.  But here’s the one that I bet takes you by surprise:

• I will be pushed outside my comfort zone

Did you do a double-take? Many people do. Why? It’s easy to associate getting outside our comfort zones with mistakes, failure, feeling foolish, getting laughed at. 

But, I’m not the least bit surprised. You know why? I’ve spent my whole career at VoicePro helping people get outside their comfort zones. They aren’t crushed by the effort – they’re transformed by it. The word “empowered” is barely descriptive. I see magic happen every day. People “step out” and discover new strengths and abilities that can transfer far outside the specific knowledge they’re pursuing.

Of course, helping people out of their comfort zone is a skill – and an art. That’s why years of experience lead me to agree with the third success predictor:

• I will have access to formal training needed for new skills

As much as we all can learn on our own – from a book, from a mentor, from e-learning – we sometimes need formal training in a safe environment, where leaders won’t let us back down, but help us find new abilities.

It starts with a safe place away from the people and situations that can make us timid. But there’s much more. My job is to find a way to help you find yourself. Sometimes I coax.  Maybe I nudge. The trigger could be a question – or a story. Sometimes I’m a flashlight that shows the way. And sometimes I help swing that axe that chops a hole in the comfort zone wall. 

That’s what formal training should be about – not just knowledge, but power. By the way, this isn’t a sales pitch. It’s a mission statement and a commitment my staff and I live by.

What are your goals for yourself this year? For your team? Are you’re ready for a trip outside your comfort zone? Are you ready to reach for your goals?

Image by btmlinedan

How can we use this knowledge to be more effective leaders? One way is to learn from the world of sports. Dr. Judd Blaslotto at the University of Chicago compared mental visualization with actual physical practice of basketball free throws. His amazing discovery: Those who visualized but did not physically make a single free throw improved their percentages almost as much as those who physically practiced everyday for an hour. Top athletes now include visualization (or mental rehearsal) as part of their normal routine.

In the same way, you can be more intentional about what you think and what you visualize. Visualization is the process of creating a mental image (or intention) of what you want to feel or have happen. Managing what and how you think can be tricky, but a few key principles can help.

• First, visualize what you want, not what you don’t want. Remember, movement goes in the direction of the image. So if you’re riding a bicycle, look in the direction you want to go, not at the ditch at the side of the road, or you’re likely to steer involuntarily toward the ditch. Likewise, when you walk into a high-stakes meeting, instead of concentrating on not being nervous, visualize yourself projecting composed confidence.
• Second, listen to your “inner monologue.” Your inner monologue functions as guiding imagery for you and molds your behavior and performance. So if you realize you’re thinking things like: “I’m over my head” or “I’m blowing it,” make a choice to replace that self-talk with something more helpful, such as: “This is a problem to solve and I can figure it out”  or “I am handling this.”
• Finally, when communicating with others, rather than focusing on the removal of something negative, focus on the presence of something positive. Rather than ask, “Why didn’t someone catch this error?” ask instead, “What can we do to ensure fewer errors in the future?” This may seem like a minor shift, but the effect on your communication, influence, and results can be profound.  Remember, you will move in the direction of your mental images, so if you anticipate positive results, you’re more likely to achieve them.

We face challenging situations everyday. Much is out of our control; for instance, what people’s predisposition might be, what could get pitched our way and blindside us, or even what might happen when we’re looking the other way. So when something solidly within our control is actually within our grasp, we must seize on it. Our thoughts are well within our control, and if visualizing a successful outcome will hedge our bets, then our course is clear.

Image by qthomasbower

Your credibility is decided upon by other peoples’ perceptions of you and what they observe about you. So, being heard and believed requires you to be sensitive to your communication habits that convey — or undermine — your credibility. Some of us don’t harness our credibility, or we may even “sabotage” it in ways we don’t know.

To convey to others the qualities that will build your credibility in their eyes, consider the following tips that have provided highly effective results for our clients.

• Demonstrate openness. Perhaps the most important quality for integrity is the ability to appreciate the feelings and ideas of other people, while maintaining the integrity of your own. Listen with genuine interest to the people around you. Look at them. Keeping an open posture, relaxed manner and direct gaze will communicate your honesty and integrity. An open posture will also indicate to people that you have nothing to hide; you are comfortable with them and confident in yourself.
• Breathe deeply and learn to speak and project your voice by using your diaphragm. You will not only project a stronger voice and clarity, you will project a more powerful persona. By simply breathing properly, you are better able to connect with the inner source of your personal power.
• Silence the “internal critic.” We all have an “internal critic” that whispers to us about our shortcomings. Don’t listen. Believe in yourself and the value you bring to others. Be yourself, be natural, and bring that genuine quality into your presentations and your interpersonal communications. You will find people will connect with you on a much deeper level.
• Express yourself and your enthusiasm. Becoming more physically expressive will engage others and create a stronger connection with them. When you lighten up and move freely, your professionalism is enhanced, not diminished. Even if you’re not talking, you’re communicating credibility with non-verbal expression.

When you learn to relax under pressure, breathe from the diaphragm, stay open as you look at and listen to people, and be genuine with verbal and non-verbal expression, everything changes. You convey integrity, expertise, dynamism and open-mindedness. People will see you as credible. They’ll see your inner intensity and passion that is not pushy or brash. You’ll display a quiet authority that others perceive and appreciate under any circumstances.

Image by R Bubnis

It’s interesting (and, well, just a little entertaining) to look at the world in that cut-and-dried way. But we all know people in every profession everywhere whose authenticity we can count on. You’ve bought a car from someone you trust. You’ve voted for a legislator you believed in. How did you know you could trust them? We say it’s “just a feeling.” However, the fact is, human beings are constantly gauging credibility by reading very real signals people give in every interaction.

Now you’ve probably got two questions in your mind. 

1. What are the signals of credibility? (More on that in a minute.)
2. Are people judging me by them, too? (You bet they are.)

Let’s take a look in the mirror and see how the way we communicate affects perceptions of our authenticity and credibility – and what we can do to raise our scores. The good news is, the indicators people watch are skills you can learn. With this knowledge – and practice – you can communicate credibility that builds your influence. You can take steps to boost the trust of colleagues and customers, supervisors and employees. You are in control of how much impact your words have with others. 

Here are some proven tips we’ve been sharing with others at VoicePro for more than two decades. Try these ideas in your next presentation or conversation and see the difference:

• Be open. Credible people have nothing to hide, no need to be defensive, and nothing to prove. They can listen, keep eye contact, and have relaxed body language. Their easiness communicates integrity.
• Breathe deeply. When you speak you’ll project your voice with an air of confidence. When a situation gets tense, this advice gets twice as important.
• Turn off the “internal critic.” You know that voice that tells you you’re not smart enough or strong enough?  Don’t listen.  It can unnerve you, cause you to act in ways that aren’t authentic. Learn to trust yourself – and others will, too.
• Loosen up and share your enthusiasm. Your comfort is contagious and so is your dynamism. You’ll connect with people and they’ll respond with trust and respect.

Want to dig a little deeper? You’ll find more tips and newsletter ideas on building influence, creating more powerful presentations and developing a strong presence at our website.

Image by Gregg Obst

Not so fast.  No presentation is complete until you’ve considered your audience.  Why?  The person who’s hearing your message brings his or her own way of interpreting the world to the conference room table.  To communicate successfully, you need to take that into account.  Every conversation is a collaboration.  You need to send messages in a way that the listener is truly able to receive them.  Think of it this way: if you’re throwing a football and your listener is holding a tennis racket, there’s no way to score.  Better communication skills can help you convey information in a way that makes you more persuasive, a better negotiator, a stronger leader.

Psychological research suggests a person tends to respond to communication in one of four styles:  dominance, influence, steadiness or compliance. The styles aren’t good or bad – just different.  When you learn to “speak the language” of others, you’re likely to make the most progress.  And remember, it’s not just what you say that counts — how you say something is just as important.  Human beings are wired to respond to the expressive quality of our communication.  So our speaking style and body language are all part of the message.

Let’s look at the four communication styles and ways to address them.

1.  Dominance.  Think of the dominant person as a “bottom-line” type – direct, active, competitive, results-oriented. She is focused on speed,  flexibility, and achieving results.

Approach: “Cut to the chase.”  Be crisp and to the point.  How are you solving a problem? Moving the organization ahead? If you’re naturally gregarious, you’ll want to tone it down for the bottom-line personality.  Quiet hands, serious demeanor, limited small talk are all effective.

2.  Influence. This person is characterized as expressive, fun, creative, friendly, adventuresome, spontaneous. He is people-oriented, values recognition for himself and others, and focuses on  challenges and action.

Approach: Address people issues with an influencer.  Keep in mind that your spontaneity and passion – in word and body language – will help him respond to your proposal.  A stolid, grim delivery will interfere with message transmission.

3.  Steadiness.  This is someone who values concern, dependability, consideration and cooperation. Appreciation is good, conflict brings discomfort. Feelings and relationships are important.

Approach: How ideas are implemented is important to him.  Will it disrupt good systems? Have you thought through how to eliminate snafus to help keep people in their comfort zones?  Be sure not to rush through or brush off his concerns, either in words or manner. 

4.  Compliance.  Solutions that are safe and proven rank high with this analytical type.  She looks for logic, accuracy, precision, efficiency.  The wise course means proceeding with caution to ensure quality and no mistakes.

Approach: Understand that this person will want to know that you’ve thought through the details. You’ve planned for disruptions so nobody drops the ball.  Even if you’re in the early stages of a project, you may want to outline the steps to assure her of a careful process.  Close attention to details will win the day when your personal excitement or anticipation of potential of results will make no difference at all.

 But, what if you’re talking to someone you don’t know?  A sales prospect?  A new team member?  A consultant?  That’s when you use what may be the most powerful communication skill of all: listening.  Put your script aside.  Look the person in the eye.  Ask questions.  Watch for signs that reveal his or her communication style.  As you’re watching and listening, you’ll be able to adapt your message accordingly. 

Want to know more about motivating and persuading others? Click here.

Image By Meltin Mudd Studio

Here’s where I hear you mumbling to yourself, “Yeh, but those are high level skills. We’re talking about…talking.  I do that every day.  Do I really need to practice that?” Yes. Really. 

Now you’re thinking, “But all the really great presenters are laid back…talking off the cuff.”

I agree…almost. The best speakers seem like they’re having a conversation just with you. Nothing stilted, very relaxed. Check out some these great speeches housed on one of my favorite websites, TED - Steve Jobs, former UCLA coach John Wooden, even Bono.   “They look like they’re making it up as they go along,” you say.   My response: that’s how you know they practiced.

 The most compelling speakers know that practice serves a valuable purpose on so many levels. Let’s take a look at some of them.

• Practice helps you test your material. Is it too long? Are your explanations clear? Are you getting to the point or rambling? Maybe you’ll change up some cold facts for an unforgettable story. Or see a place for a demonstration instead of a PowerPoint slide.
• Practice helps you know your material without memorizing it. Nothing makes listeners zone out more than what feels like a 10^th grade memorization exercise. When you see a great movie, the actors are living the lines, not reciting them. That applies to you, too.
• Practice puts you in control. If the projector fails, if your notes get out of order, if a marching band starts playing in the hallway…you’ll be able to stay focused because you know what you’re saying.
• Practice lets you “be yourself.” Do you sound like you’re reading a stilted, written document or having a conversation?  Practicing lets you relax, breathe deeply, keep your mind clear. Someone will ask a challenging question – and you won’t get ruffled. You’ll notice confusion on your audience’s faces, and you’ll brainstorm an idea on how to clarify it on the spot.  
• Practice lets you have a bigger idea. There’s a great video of Bobbie McFerrin (Composer and performer of Don’t Worry, Be Happy) on TED that illustrates how our mind thinks in music. He has the audience improvise a song with him instead of explaining the science. And it communicates so much more than the words of the panel of neuroscientists that share the stage with him.  

 How you get the most out of your practice?  Try this advice.

• Practice out loud. Really. Don’t just read over the text or review your notes. That’s cheating. Stand up, say it loud. There’s a great scene in the movie Elizabeth in which Cate Blanchett as the young British queen goes over and over a speech she’ll be giving to advisors who don’t think she’s capable of ruling. As she practices, she truly “finds her voice” – ways to persuade, disarm, amuse and captivate even her critics.
• Practice without looking at your slides. Don’t let them become a crutch. (In fact, we recommend you eliminate a lot of slides since they can become a distraction not an aid – check this blog entry from the archives.)
• Practice being imperfect. Get truly comfortable with your material, so a stumble or missed paragraph doesn’t become a disaster. You just walk your way through it.

 Looking for more ideas on great presentations?  Check out these tips from VoicePro’s workshops. 

Image by i_zhorov

This is the question that causes sleepless nights, and the angst felt at the top trickles down through the entire organization. That, combined with incessant media hyperbole, creates a culture of tension and fear, leaving everyone with the deep, disquieting, single most important question: What about me?

Yet, from the executive suite to the plant floor, everyone is expected to show up day after day and do the job without complaining. It’s incredibly hard to remain emotionally intact in such circumstances.

At VoicePro^®, we are toughing out these difficult times along with everyone else. And while we can’t give you strategic solutions to the monumental problems of the present economy, we can, from our own experience, offer suggestions for maintaining a sense of emotional equilibrium during these tough times. They include acknowledging your feelings and surrounding them with a healthy and positive framework.

Change Your Story

Your story is the internal narrative you have created about yourself. It’s the ongoing dialogue you have with yourself that defines you and controls how you handle triumph and how you face up to adversity. Just by changing your story you can impact what you feel—and in turn what you do.

According to Deepak Chopra, whenever you think, you are altering your brain chemistry. This means that your story, the story you tell yourself, creates neural patterns in your brain that become your reality. Negative thoughts over time turn into negative behaviors, and you become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Just as an athlete learns to perform physical feats through mental practicing, you can change your story by changing your thoughts and giving yourself new, more positive metal images.

Don’t Let Yourself Go Negative

Negativism will drain your energy. So when you catch yourself with depressing thoughts about yourself or your situation, stop. Go back and rephrase, removing the negative tone and replacing it with something more constructive. Keep it upbeat and in the present tense: I am managing my situation very well, right now, rather than, I will be able to handle it (in the future).

Surround yourself with positive people. Avoid the gloom-and-doom conversations at the coffee machine or in the lunch room. The moment people start talking about how helpless they are and how the deck is stacked against them, get up and go somewhere else.

Take the Time to Quiet Your Mind

It’s so easy to go into drive mode when you’re under pressure. In tough economic times, every sales pitch counts. Personnel issues take on an added dimension, because the lives of families are on the line. Even small changes in the bottom line are momentous. It’s tempting to give in to anxious thoughts and try harder and harder and harder, spinning your wheels until you’re emotionally exhausted.

Just as a parent does with a child, you need to give yourself a timeout. Take five minutes to sit quietly with your feet on the floor and your eyes closed. Relax the tension in your face, your shoulders, and your hands. Now, listen to your breathing. Breathe out, breathe in. Breathe out, breathe in. That’s all there is to it, just five minutes a day.

When we do this exercise at VoicePro^® with workshop participants, the change in atmosphere is almost instantaneous. A calm settles over the room, and when the moment is over, everyone is focused and ready to concentrate on what’s coming next.

Act As If It Were True

In 12-step programs, it’s called “fake it till you make it.” The idea is that if you behave in a certain way, even if initially it feels forced, you will come to feel that way. Studies have shown that “faking it till you make it” can have an immediate—and surprisingly strong—impact on your emotions. So If you act calm, confident and assertive, you will eventually feel calm, confident and assertive. The altered neural patterns in your brain will have given you a new reality.

So straighten up, square your shoulders, and stand tall. Move with purpose, and smile as if you mean it.

Yes, the reality is, times are tough. But we don’t have to give in to anxiety or sink into despair. At VoicePro^®, we’re writing our own story. You too can write yours, however you see it, however you want.

 Image by Piez

In a great piece by Inc Magazine, CEOs were asked for their best productivity tips. One of my favorites was this one from Kevin Ryan, founder of DoubleClick and now head of internet start-up AlleyCorp. He says he’s always interviewing because he believes 80% of business success is in the people. That includes talking on a regular basis with up-and-comers in his organization who are two or three levels down from him. Why? “I want them to know I’m paying attention,” he says.  How could you reshape your organization by thinking of communicating with others as a productivity booster – not a distraction?  

Similar advice is found in an article from The Chief Executive titled: You’re Always a New CEO. Carlos M. Gutierrez, former chairman and CEO of Kellogg Co, may have said it best: “You need to over-communicate, to be willing to walk the talk and to make sure the actions are consistent with the messages.” How well are you communicating with the people in your circle of influence? Do you want to make those interactions more productive? Start with few ideas on effective communication skills from VoicePro^®.

Here’s another suggestion, this time from the global business arena. In a CNN article titled What Bosses Can Learn from Indian Business Leaders, one core suggestion was “act as a role model.” Are you modeling the behavior you value in others? Does your behavior align with your words? Actions do, as they say, speak louder than words. 

Here’s one more tip that reminds us what CEOs know: listening is as important as talking for good communication. On the website of The Center for Social Leadership there’s a great member post for new CEOs that applies to all of us. The writer suggests spending the first six months on a “listening tour.”  Isn’t that the truth? How else can we be clear on how well the company’s (and our own) goals and expectations are being understood? Unless we listen to people first, our communication is likely to be a scattershot, not on target. As important as listening is, our experience at VoicePro^® suggests it demands an incredible amount of concentration and self discipline. 

No matter where you are on your career ladder, try these ideas out in your own workplace. See how acting like a CEO can take you, your organization and your career to the next level.

Image by KovaZg

Ever feel like you’re starring in that scene – except that it’s set in an office or conference room instead of a dusty street? Take your communication tips from John Wayne and you’re going to end up the loser. It’s a fact. Studies show that when two strangers meet, the one who is most physically relaxed is perceived by both as having the higher status. In a group setting, the most relaxed person is most likely to ultimately become the group leader. 

So, you see, personal power doesn’t come from being so intense you seem wound tight. And it certainly isn’t conveyed when you’re being nervous and fidgety. Power comes from being able to relax. When you’re comfortable with yourself, you telegraph confidence and self-esteem. Stay calm physically, mentally and emotionally and you’re in control.

Relaxation is one of the Five Great Skills® at the core of VoicePro’s approach to effective communication. They’re skills anyone can learn, practice and use to present themselves and their ideas. What are the other four skills? Let’s take a quick look.

• Energy. When you communicate with authentic conviction, people see confidence.
• Expression. It’s in your face, your voice and your body language, and it’s crucial to the understanding of your message.
• Organization. When you put together your message in a powerful way, you create strong personal influence.
• Focus. It shouldn’t be on your message or your own concerns. Your focus needs to be on others. That’s how connection is made. 

Want to know more? Visit us at www.voiceproinc.com and even watch a video on the topic with our own Luanne Paynick. Just register to for a free membership – it only takes a minute.

And the next time you find yourself striding into your own OK Corral , take a moment to settle yourself. Take a deep breath and loosen up. Relaxation may be just the silver bullet you’re looking for.