Tag Archive for 'warwick john fahy'

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Talk less, say more: three ways to becoming more influential

Published on in Create Your Connection and Influence. Closed Tags: , , .

Today’s topic: Talk less, say more.

“Talk less, say more” is the title of a book by Connie Dieken. It’s an easy to read book with three broad steps and plenty of quick tips on how to be more effective as a communicator in today’s distracted world. The message is very much inline with the philosophy of The One Minute Presenter: 8 steps to more successful business presentations in a short attention span world. 

The three steps or habits are:

  1. Give people what they want and value so they’ll tune in
  2. Use portion control to get your points across with clarity, not confusion
  3. Create commitment to influence decisions, actions, results. 

 

Connect: Managing Attentions

I’m a big believer that the major communication obstacle we all face today is shortening attention spans. Station 4 in The One Minute Presenter is called Create your Connection and this first habit is all about how to connect. Connie gives good suggestions around Staying in their Moment which is all about listening carefully. She also introduces a concept called “Frontloading” which means you quickly find what’s relevant to your listener and communicate what matters most to them first. This helps the audience stay connected to you and your message. Another technique involves been more candid. Connie suggests that you don’t sugercoat and do your best to create a candid culture. This is a good idea. However, for those of you working in Asia, you may need to adjust what candour means for your audience. You may be able to be direct with an American colleague in a stronger way than with your Chinese boss. 

 

Convey: Managing Information 

I love the concept of portion control. What a great idea! Especially as I see this as a major problem inside businesses today.  Too much information being dumped on the audience without any clear point. It’s lazy presenting. Connie’s tips include reminding us that the eyes trump the ears; use visuals when they convey the message more directly than words. Talk in triplets is another reminder; the rule of three is a useful technique to use while presenting. Also the power of stories are lauded as a way to engage your audience more than a fact-attack.

Convince: Managing Action

This habit is all around how to influence people’s behaviours, decisions and actions. This is often the most challenging skill for people to master. Sounding decisive is a good start. Connie suggests that you contribute to meetings and voice your opinions with sincerity. As many managers realise this is often an area that is missing in many business meetings. Having the ability and confidence to speak up is a sure way to increase your visibility inside your organisation, and assuming you’ve got something useful to say – a good way to career progression. Another tip is to adjust your energy to help boost your likeability, an important ingredient to influence others. Adding warmth your voice and energy to your face can help. Seek role models in your company and also on TV to help you see how to increase your energy range.

 

One second survey: What format do you prefer to receive?

Do you prefer reading, listening or watching your information? Please help me adjust this newsletter into a format you like with this one-second, one-question survey. I’m considering offering this in audio and video versions and would love to hear your feedback. It will only take a second! Here’s a link to the survey. 

 

 Working with Warwick

I’ll be working around Asia this year and if you need to boost your leadership capacity in your China operations, then you can see an introduction to my service areas here. I especially work with technical executives and business development teams to help Chinese managers become more competent and confident in their leadership presence.

Influencing in China: Adapting to culture

Published on in Create Your Connection and Influence. Closed Tags: , , .

I recently read an article on Harvard Business Review’s web site about giving effective feedback across cultures.

The three tips were:

  1. Learn the new cultural rules
  2. Find a cultural mentor
  3. Customise your behaviour

 

Learn the new cultural rules

I agree that it’s important to understand as much as you can about the culture you are operating. It’ll help you build rapport and not make too many gaffes if you can navigate the basic ground rules. There are some useful models you can use like Hofstede and the GLOBE research. However, one caveat you need to bear in mind is that all these studies are conducted at the macro level and make grand generalisations. The reality of being a manager and leader is that you are dealing with individuals not cultures.

 

I disagree that cultural rules will help you manage and lead effectively in a multinational in China today. The main reason is that “rules” are viewed very differently from one culture to another. Over many years working with leaders in China I’ve noticed that when people do not wish to change they will use a couple of common excuses like “My English is not good enough to understand my manager.” or “It’s a cultural difference. I can’t work with X because he/she is a foreigner.”

 

While I agree that culture influences the relationships, it also gives an easy way out if a person does not wish to adjust their behaviour. In the vast majority of cases I found that there was another issue or a deeper concern which was the real reason. If you are a leader or manager part of your role is to manage change through people. Better advice in the China context is Learn the human side of motivation.

 

Beyond monetary incentives are you aware of what makes your team tick? Are you able to align your feedback to their motivations? Build a good one-on-one relationship with your team. In a Confucian culture your interest and desire to help them develop their skills and career will be greatly appreciated. How you are able to implement this effectively will depend on how good your judgement is on what motivates your people.

 

Find a cultural mentor

I agree that a supportive mentor will be an asset when adapting to a new culture or overcoming problems that occur with culturally diverse teams. Some companies have mentor programs which offer some informal support.

 

Finding a good match for your mentor is essential. I’d suggest you have a range of mentors, rather than just one person. You might find it easier to communicate with someone from a similar background who has deep experience in your industry. But they might also have similar blind-spots. You could find someone from the home culture to offer insights and suggestions. It could also be a good idea to have a mentor from outside your organisation and who can give insights free from political considerations.

 

One downside of a mentor is it’s informal and relatively infrequent nature. Most mentor relationships do not have specific objectives. An alternative solution could be an experienced advisor or coach who has experience working with similar situations or industries. A coaching relationship has more accountability and can be used when situations arise unexpectedly and urgently.

 

Customise your behaviour

I agree with the article’s suggestion that you don’t need to go native to be successful. In the case where the German manager had a very direct style of feedback, some adjustment was needed to not alienate staff but also importantly the new style had to feel natural to the German manager.

 

Given the increasingly likelihood that you will need to work with a diverse range of cultures, it’s a good idea to build your own global style. I’ve lived abroad for 19 years and although I retain my British style I’m happy to be regarded as a global citizen who can relate and communicate with a broad ranges of cultures from Asia, Middle East to Europe and Americas. A couple of adjustments I needed to make included slowing down my vocal speed, reducing phrases and idioms that only work if you’re a native speaker. Learning to listen very carefully to the context as well as the words and gestures in a communication. Remembering to check my understanding before responding. Not assuming that my way is the only way. Nor assuming that everyone sees the world the way I do.

 

Becoming proficient as a leader or manager in a multi-cultural environment requires you to be yourself but to also become aware of how others like to communicate. It’s more about listening and observing than speaking.

 

Links:

Giving Feedback Across Cultures

http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2013/02/giving_feedback_across_cultures.html

 

Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness Research Project

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Leadership_and_Organizational_Behavior_Effectiveness_Research_Project

7 mistakes made while selling professional services to clients

Published on in Resources. Closed Tags: , , , .

I’m lucky to work with a diverse range of industries, companies and people and sometimes I notice similarities that thread through these companies. One thread is when companies sell business-to-business professional services like engineering, audit and taxation, advertising creative, event management and consulting.

They often rely on a pitch from the business development team with a technical expert. These high stakes presentations have hundreds of thousands or millions of euros on the line. Here are some frequent highly correctable issues that companies face selling their professional services:

1. Business development and technical team mates don’t work together to “present an unified front ” to the client.This leads to the client seeing cracks on the surface of your pitch and leads them to wonder whether the actual service delivery will be equally disjointed.

2. They present with the assumption that clients understand and interpret data the same way as they do.This leads to information delivered but not digested. It means that you have not taken the client’s perspective enough to see the world from their point of view. It means that your message is not understood in the way you intended. Ultimately, you lose all rapport with the client.

3. They don’t predict and prepare for tough questions in key face to face meetings. This leads to moments in the meeting when there is uncomfortable silence, shifty gazes between team mates and shuffling of papers. This is usually accompanied by clearing of throats and a keen interest in looking down at the table. Clients don’t expect you to know everything but they do expect a robustly detailed preparation around their main issues. You can make or break your credibility on how you handle questions in a high stakes meeting.

4. They haven’t spent the time to create an umbrella message.  This leads to a download of data, PowerPoint slides, a lot of talking about your history, products, clients and services but without any clear idea bringing it all together under one umbrella. The umbrella message is a short concise one line message that sums up the pitch of your competitive advantage for this specific client. It’s not your company slogan but a tailored message for this client. All your presentation content can tie back to it and it leaves a clear idea in the client’s mind about why they should hire you.

5. Business development team mates don’t lead the meeting like a  “conductor leading an orchestra”. This leads to situations where the client talks directly to your technical expert and puts the expert on the spot. From the client’s perspective this is understandable. While the business development guy has the charm, the technical guy has the know how. From your perspective, you need to filter and protect your technical experts who may not be as fast on their feet as their business development colleagues. The BD needs to take the first bullet, interpret the question, set it up from his colleague and summarise afterwards so that the client gets their answer and the technical experts get their time to think.

6. Technical experts lack the presence to hold their own in meetings and conference calls. This leads to your credibility taking a pounding and hinders your overall pitch. It drags the overall positive impact you wish to make on your potential client. You need to know which one of your technical experts is competent in front of clients and who is not. Then you must make a decision whether to develop them up to an acceptable standard or have them focus on project delivery. It’s an important choice to make as clients always want to meet the people doing the work as early as possible in the relationship. The impressions your technical experts leave with the client will the impression they have of your services.

7. They miss opportunities to drive home their unique selling points that separate them from their competitors. This leads to an instantly forgettable pitch. While it’s important you know how you compete against your competitors, it’s equally important that the client has a view in their minds of why they should choose you. Why you are perfect for this project. Make sure your presentation has one umbrella message and two to three very strong and compelling selling points that position your offering favourably against your typical competitors.

These 7 mistakes give you a flavour of the typical mistakes made when pitching for professional services contracts. The good news is that they are fixable. We work around China, Singapore, Malaysia, and Korea to help companies polish their business development teams. To learn more please contact us for more information here. Or reply to this email. We wish you a prosperous 2013!

Stop wasting your time. Start rehearsing effectively

Published on in Deliver with Style and executive presence. Closed Tags: , , , .

Rehearse Like an Actor: What Executive Presenters Can Learn from the world of theater

 Stages to move through to be well-prepared for every high stakes presentations.

 1. Script read through

2. Run – throughs

3. Tops and Tails

4. Cue-to-Cue

5. Dress rehearsal

 

One of the most common excuses that executives use before they deliver presentations is that they didn’t have enough time to prepare. Picture this scene. The board of directors are filling up the meeting room before the annual strategy review session. The financial director walks up to the front of the room, plays with some pieces of paper, coughs, looks down and then says he doesn’t think he is prepared for the presentation.

No doubt you have seen variations of this presentation opening. What impact does this have on his credibility? It immediately sows seeds of doubt in the minds of senior managers. Perhaps, after all, this director is not capable of higher positions.

Business presenters often spend hours preparing PowerPoint slides only to deliver a low-energy dull presentation in front of the people who will be deciding their promotion prospects later in the day. While you don’t have to become an actor to be a good presenter, you can certainly learn from the stages that each actor goes through to be totally ready.

 

 

Stage 1: Script read through

At the start of rehearsals, actors read through their scripts, first alone, and then with the other actors. Script mastery is just the first step in their performance preparation. Most business presenters struggle to complete even this stage, often unable to express coherently what their talk is all about. Every presentation must have a clear overall message with content clearly separated into distinctly different ideas. An opening that sets the context and engages the audiences by addressing their most pressing concerns. A body that divides the content into separate sections or to use a theater word “scenes”. A closing that brings all the content together into a clear outcome, reinforces the overall message and moves the audience into the next part of the meeting, often the question and answer session. An important tip to remember is that at this stage the outline does not need to be perfect. There is still opportunity to modify during the next steps. This stage is ideally done with pen and paper. It should take you no longer than 30 minutes to outline your talk.

Stage 2: Run – throughs

With an outline in hand it’s time to have a run through. This should be rehearsed until the content is memorized. Find blocks of rehearsal time. Instead of going to a restaurant at lunch, grab a sandwich and take a walk in the park. While walking around, talk through the presentation without looking at notes. Speak it out while driving into work, or book a meeting room to practice the delivery. The key here is that it should be spoken aloud as new ideas will arise while the delivery becomes smoother. Don’t use a computer or any slides at this point. The aim is to be 100% comfortable with the flow and content. Modify your outline as ideas come up. Add supporting points, rearrange sections. You should be able to stand up and deliver a speech without looking at any notes or without any supporting visuals. This stage might take a day for familiar material or up to a week for a high stakes meeting. This is the stage where you build up your confidence.

Stage 3: Tops and Tails

The two most important parts of a presentation are the opening and closing. Both parts attract the greatest audience attention and are the best opportunities to deliver a takeaway message. They are often delivered with a higher level of authority and punch. Take the opening two minutes and rehearse it as a stand-alone section. Record it and while listening to the recording, look for ways to make the delivery more impactful. Use crisper and sharper words. Make a closer connection to the audience with words they relate with. Likewise, repeat this approach with the closing. This is the final chance to convey the message and leave the audience with a positive impression. The opening and closing sections can be scripted word-for-word for very important talks, however, never read from notes. It lessens your impact. This stage should only take around 30 minutes because by this stage you are very familiar with your content and message.

Stage 4: Cue-to-Cue

The biggest stress is often caused by projectors so always plan a technology check for all your presentations. For smaller conference room presentations, go at least a couple of hours before to connect your computer to the projector, test the sound and video and ensure the mouse clicker works. For larger settings, arrive the day before and work with technicians in the venue. Spend time on the stage and walk around planning where to start, how to move on the stage and where to finish. Rehearse a couple of sections of the presentation with a microphone to hear what volume is needed to fill the room. Once you are set-up do your best not to move anything.

Stage 5: Dress rehearsal

This covers your on the day preparation. Regardless of what time the presentation is due to start, schedule a time for a dress rehearsal. Rehearse in the same room if possible using all the technology planned and microphones needed. You will speak the entire presenation aloud word-for word. This final run through boosts confidence for the live version. The second delivery of the day will be smoother and you will appear more natural.

 

CONCLUSION

90% of the executives I work with don’t know how to rehearse adequately. They waste time on inconsequential parts of the presentation while ignoring their personal impact. By going through these five stage of preparation you will feel more confident and be more relaxed to deliver a powerful presentation that influences your audience.

 

Do you or your team need help?  We work with executives on the “how tos” of more natural and influential business presenting. Feel free to contact us at any time to learn about the step-by-step approach we have taught thousands of executives around Asia. 

The Five Things I learned from my TEDx Talk – Nerves never go away. Create your own ritual.

Published on in presenter, Resources, speaking with purpose and You the Presenter. Closed Tags: , , .

The Five Things I learned from my TEDx Talk

1. Nerves never go away. Create your own ritual.

2. Improvisation is the mindset for live events. Use the take-it-and-go approach.

3. You have to involve the audience. Plan your interactions.

4. Successful speaking comes in many styles. Find your speaking voice.

5. Timing a talk is the icing on the cake. Rehearsal is the key to perfect timing.

Over the next few blogs, I will share what I learned and how you can apply it to improve your public speaking skills. Here is part one:

 
1. Nerves never go away. Create your own ritual

I am sure you can relate to that feeling of worry which you feel before or during a public speech. Heart rate going a little faster. Sweat beads appearing on your forehead. But as an experienced speaker I rarely feel nervous. After all this is what I love doing and I really enjoy public speaking and sharing with an audience. So as the time for my TEDx talk came closer I found that I was getting all the symptoms. My mouth was a little dry and I couldn’t sit down without nervous energy building up. Why would this happen? Simply, the stakes were higher. The reputation of giving a TED talk and my own personal expectations to perform at a high level meant that this talk was more critical in my own mind.

So how can you reduce the inevitable nerves?

I have a ritual that I go through for conference speeches where I am faced by hundreds of people or TEDx talks where the potential audience is in the thousands or more. I like to move around while mentally tracing through my talk. I think about how I will open, move from one point to another, how to close and how to interact with the audience. I drink water to hydrate and by moving around I channel my nervous energy into physical energy. An important talk is a performance – a physical performance – so by preparing yourself physically you can start strong and allow your nerves to turn into enthusiasm. Before I go on stage I like to be alone but occasionally will have quick conversations to release more stress. I try to make myself and others laugh. This again puts me in the right frame of mind. I want to have light, engaging energy. I focus about the value and fun I will have with the audience. Once I get on stage and get started, my nerves disappear as I am focused on my audience and presentation delivery.

What is your ritual before your high stakes presentation?

Tick off a checklist to cover:

– Your opening 60 seconds

– How you will close

– Key transitions between slides

– How you will make eye contact with the audience

– Where you will stand

– How you will move around the stage

– Put yourself in a positive frame of mind

– Hydrate and get your physical presence ready

Next time I will have a look at another thing I learned from TEDx.

Warwick John Fahy runs workshops around Asia which help managers and senior managers from technical backgrounds to become more influential in business situations.

Warwick is Asia’s leading business presentation coach working with business leaders who need to influence clients, investors, shareholders and team members. His results-driven approach and deep cross cultural understanding make him a sought after business presentation coach throughout Asia. Download a free report “10 Warning Signs Your Leaders Lack Executive Presence” at http://www.warwickjohnfahy.com/

Wise Words to become a more influential presenter

Published on in Influence. Closed Tags: , , , .

I was recently delivering a workshop in Kuala Lumpur and over the course of the three day workshop, a few insights became clearer on how to be a clearer, more influential communicator:

1. How to learn soft skills. “Play it. Don’t tell it. Get inside the character or role. Act it out.”

When it comes to soft skills like communication, leadership and management, the best way to learn is to become an actor and step inside the role and try out the skills in real time. Most people tell you what they would do. They don’t learn the skill. They know the skill but they can’t use it. Take a situation and become the character and play with the scenario. I use improvisational activities to help manager develop these skills. It’s fun and effective.

2. Attitude to learning. “The way you do one-thing, is the way you do everything.”

People are quick with excuses. They justify their actions by saying that if the situation was different, or the audience more high profile or the presentation more important, they would do it differently. In reality, they will do it the say way. One of the challenges in a workshop is a closing presentation or role play. Even after a day or two of trying out skills and learning new tips the majority of people go back to their old habits. My role as a trainer is to intervene so that they shift from old skills to new skills. The people who perform the skills in a workshop are often the ones you will apply them in the workplace.

3. Learning by re-doing. “Step outside your comfort zone by making small adjustments.”

By definition, to learn something, you have to try out something new. This involves stepping outside your comfort zone and feeling uncertainty. This is a not a nice feeling and most people avoid it. The best learners realise that they only have to make small adjustments on a continual basis to really see a big improvement. Don’t look for massive changes. If you are looking for something mind-blowing and totally new, you will probably spent most of your time disappointed. Take action now with the things you do know. Chances are you not implementing all the good tips and techniques you know. Pick a focus area and target small – and ongoing – changes.

4. Expertise is not enough. “It’s not only what you say, it’s how you say it.”

I have talked before about the trap of technical experts. They know too much, so they say too much. Another trap with subject matter experts is that they believe the content is all they need to shine. Unfortunately, it’s not. You are not unique in the world. There are many other people doing exactly the same thing you are doing somewhere else in the world. And that’s fine. The world can accommodate this. So what this means is that you need to inject your own personality into your communicating and influencing. Be yourself, and always look for ways to better connect and relate to your audience.

5. Influence is precise. “Use precision tools, not blunt objects when communicating”

Being precise and specific while communicating and influencing is tremendously difficult for technical people. They are great when it comes to being precise about numbers, statistics, processes and standards. To achieve mastery in soft skills needs taking this precision and transferring it to the field of human behaviour. You need to be an excellent listener and observer to see what impact and change your presentation or speech is having on the audience. Learn how to test their level of engagements. Is that person bored because they are looking at their watch or do they just want to check the time?  Drill down. Being “confident” is a destination not a process. What does a confident person project? How is their posture, they voice and gestures. You can learn these micro-behaviours and add them to your arsenal to becoming a more proficient influencer.

Warwick John Fahy runs workshops around Asia which help managers and senior managers from technical backgrounds to become more influential in business situations.

Warwick is author of The One Minute Presenter: 8 steps to successful business presentations in a short attention span world. Read Warwick’s blog and download an e-version of The One Minute Presenter at http://www.oneminutepresenter.com/

Warwick is Asia’s leading business presentation coach working with business leaders who need to influence clients, investors, shareholders and team members. His results-driven approach and deep cross cultural understanding make him a sought after business presentation coach throughout Asia. Download a free report “10 Warning Signs Your Leaders Lack Executive Presence” at http://www.warwickjohnfahy.com/

Two warning signs that executives need help with their public speaking, communication and presentation skills

Published on in executive presence and speaking with purpose. Closed Tags: , , .

I work with many senior executives from CEOs and CFOs to Presidents and Country Managers. Many of these executives are from technical disciplines like finance, engineering and IT. Regardless of their culture or language,they often share some bad habits which I suspect is a result of what it takes to be successful in their technical roles. Firstly, they know too much so they say too much. A presentation of 20-30 minutes is not the time to download your complete knowledge on the audience or to bamboozle them with a stream of facts and figures that are not put in a clear context. These executives are too process and detail-oriented when it comes to delivering a high level executive presentation or conversation.

Secondly, if you believe that a successful leader is an accomplished communicator, do you agree that a business presenter who stands and reads word-for-word from the slides is reducing their credibility as a leader? You wouldn’t turn your back on someone when you are having a one-on-one conversation and expect them to think you are sane. So why do so many business presenters think it’s okay to turn their backs to an important audience?The audience can read faster than you can narrate the words on the slide, so what value are you adding? Many senior executives are painfully unaware about how they are coming across and – clearly – do not know how to rehearsal productively for important speeches and presentations.

These two symptoms are often a sign of deeper communication issues. I suspect – from working with many executives around China and Asia – that these are warning signs like a beacon being lit into a dark night. When I see these behaviours I start to notice other communication issues holding these executives back.

I help technical executives to overcome these types of problems that are holding them back from being more influential and effective. In fact, with some pointed advice and application of a few simple techniques these executives- who are generally very smart and very competent in their field – are able to sharpen up their spoken communication and come across as more engaging and – importantly – to speak with a message. They have a point to what they are saying and they are able to make it more persuasively. And let’s face it, if you are a senior executive in a multinational company in a complex market like China, communication is your job. I help executives acquire the skills so that more effective communication becomes a learned skill – they don’t need to think about it too much – so they can get on with their real job of leading their company through change.

If you have an executive who is important to the success of your organisation and they could do with a boost in confidence, self awareness and polish in their communication and public speaking ability, why not give us a call? We can assess the situation and if we feel we are not the right solution, we’ll let you know. We have a very clear idea of the type of clients we can help. And we only want to do our best work with all our clients.

Warwick John Fahy is author of The One Minute Presenter: 8 steps to successful business presentations in a short attention span world. Read Warwick’s blog and download an e-version of The One Minute Presenter at http://www.oneminutepresenter.com/

Warwick is Asia’s leading business presentation coach working with business leaders who need to influence clients, investors, shareholders and team members. His results-driven approach and deep cross cultural understanding make him a sought after business presentation coach throughout Asia. Download a free report “10 Warning Signs Your Leaders Lack Executive Presence” at http://www.warwickjohnfahy.com/

Speech Analysis by The One Minute Presenter on Mark Bezos: A life lesson from a volunteer firefighter

Published on in Speech Analysis. Closed Tags: , , .

In this short speech Mark uses vivid story telling to set up his message.

The speech is less than 4 minutes. Watch it here:

Here is my breakdown of the speech. The things that are great about the speech are:

  • Clear message

  • Use of vivid story

  • Humour

From the start: Descriptive story telling draws you in immediately.
01min 10 sec “Lex Luther” – evil nemesis of Superman

1 min 51sec  – Use of humour: “get a pair of shoes”

2min 14sec – “I’m no hero”

2 min 25 sec – “I met my nemesis and the dog” (call back to Lex Luther reference)

3m 00 sec – use of body language to demonstrate “monumental – emphasis with arms

3min 19 sec Key message : “Don’t wait until you make your first million to make a difference in somebody’s life. If you have something to give, give it now.” (Mark Bezos)

3 mins 40sec Reinforce message with a humourous callback to story: “get in the game, save the shoes”

Use of anecdotes and stories are an enduring and powerful way to connect with your audience. Learn how to tell concise, vivid and engaging stories during your presentations and talks.

Better Business Presentations With The Journey Metaphor

Published on in speaking with purpose. Closed Tags: , , .

How to define a destination for your presentation

You have clarified your intention and you have written a purpose for your presentation. Now you are ready to go plan your journey. In coaching, this is called going from Point A to Point B. Point A is where you start your presentation and Point B is the end of your presentation. When successful, Point B is the realisation of the purpose you have written above.

I think of a presentation as a journey. Imagine you are planning a vacation. Along the way you are going to stop off and enjoy the local sights, sounds and food. We are going to look more at the “stop off” points in step 3, but for now think about what kind of journey your presentation might be.

If your purpose is to inform, your journey may be very organised like a train journey. Three stops then we get off.

If your purpose is to influence, you may need to create a more beautiful destination. How will you describe the final stop to make it sound more appealing?

If your purpose is to motivate, perhaps you need to deliver the message with more energy and enthusiasm than usual. This is called “selling yourself on the idea before you sell others”. Do you really believe what you are saying?

If your purpose is to propose or differentiate, you need to make a comparison between different options. How will you compare the choices? Advantages and disadvantages, pros and cons.

If your purpose is to request or ask for a decision, have you made the proposal as clear and simple as possible?

This exercise is more to flex your imagination and stimulate your thinking for the presentation. Spend a few minutes thinking about your presentation as a journey, what ideas or metaphors comes to mind. Can you share any experiences you have had that might be useful to share with the audience?

Samples

  • I could use my experience of spending a month on the trains of Europe when I was a teenager if my presentation touches on exploring, seeking adventures, or trying out new things.
  • I could use my time travelling American flying on a cheap one-month, unlimited flight pass by connecting it to thinking big, making things happen or being creative.
  • I could use my Ironman journey as a metaphor to present a process or system, or bring out qualities like discipline, overcoming obstacles and self-leadership.
  • I could use my journey in developing Toastmasters in China as a metaphor for taking risks, overcoming apathy, self-belief, living to values and teamwork.
  • I could talk about how I overcame my struggles with shyness to become a professional speaker.

Practice It
Take the example you have written above for your purpose, and close your eyes and let your mind wander. Think about your presentation as a journey. Start at the end and let your thoughts drift back to the start of your presentation. What ideas or metaphors come to mind? What journey does your presentation need to take?

Warwick John Fahy is author of The One Minute Presenter: 8 steps to successful business presentations in a short attention span world. Read Warwick’s blog and download an e-version of The One Minute Presenter at http://www.oneminutepresenter.com/

Warwick is Asia’s leading business presentation coach working with business leaders who need to influence clients, investors, shareholders and team members. His results-driven approach and deep cross cultural understanding make him a sought after business presentation coach throughout Asia. Download a free report “10 Warning Signs Your Leaders Lack Executive Presence” at http://www.warwickjohnfahy.com/

Copyright 2012 Warwick John Fahy All rights reserved.

Do you know the essential steps to create an effective, memorable and influential presentation?

Published on in speaking with purpose. Closed Tags: , , .

Picture this situation. You have an important presentation to deliver in two days. Your demanding schedule means you have struggled to find the time to prepare. Now finally, you have cleared a couple of hours on your schedule to think about this high-stakes speech. How are you going to spend the next two hours so that you come out with a presentation that gets your ideas across and positions you as an expert in your field?

William Edwards Deming, famous for contributing to Japan’s reputation for high quality innovative products in the years following the second world war, once said, “If you can’t describe what you are doing as a process, you don’t know what you’re doing.”

As a coach and advisor to senior executives, I have found that most executives do not have a process for one of their key requirements: the need to communicate clearly, effectively and persuasively with their direct reports, clients, investors, media and peers. They don’t have a process to think through the presentation or interview or speech. They don’t have a checklist to ensure they are thoroughly prepared for key moments. If you asked, they can only give vague statements to being “almost ready” or “I’ve made some slides”. Given the importance of an executive’s public face, this is a glaring gap. People judge you based on how you come across in public meetings and presentations. They make decisions on your ability to lead and direct an organisation based on how concisely and engagingly you can convey company strategy and change initiatives.

What can a process do to improve your public speaking or influencing ability:

It reduces your time to prepare. A checklist focuses your attention systematically so that you only spend time on the essentials. I have found that using a checklist cuts down preparation time substantially. In fact, I have reduced my preparation time to under 18 minutes (excluding rehearsals).

It increases your confidence. By going through a process you can be sure that you have covered all the major points. You reduce your anxiety around not knowing what the audience wants, you lower your stress by reassuring yourself that all major points will be delivered. By raising your certainty levels, you are boosting your confidence levels.

It improves your mastery. By using a process every time, you are becoming an expert. You are deepening your knowledge and ability. Over time you will find that the steps become engrained and as you strengthen your thinking process, you will be able to prepare a presentation to much higher standards than previously possible – and in half the time.

It allows you to become coach. A senior executive is a role model. An excellent presenter often benefits from the halo effect; their skills are seen in even greater light due to the fact that they can connect, engage and inspire people in their presentations. As a manager-coach, you will be able to transfer these skills because you have a process. A process is learn-able and measurable. You will be able to raise the effectiveness of presentations in your direct reports and you can instil an expectation for quality in communications. All this raises the productivity in your team.

The Speaking with Purpose Process has been developed from working with hundreds of senior executives and thousands of middle mangers across Asia. We have distilled the major components of preparing for a presentation or public speech in 10 easy to follow steps. These steps have been tested in our coaching engagements and in workshops in a wide range of industries and with people from all countries and hold up in range of formats; from small group presenting, key note speaking, conference calls, business presenting and large audience events.

The ten steps are :

1. Be audience ready

2. Define a clear intention & purpose

3. Organising for clarity and movement

4. Create soundbites for all main messages

5. Top and tail to open and close

6. Add supporting material to main points

7. Link each section with transitions

8. Rehearse 1-2-3-4

9. Plan connecting phrases

10. Prepare for question and answer session

I have written a book – which is more like a workbook- with 43 tools that help you develop the muscles to quickly and effectively prepare for all your business communications. I have called it “Speaking with Purpose: How to present ideas that matter in 18 minutes or less”. This is the step-by-step guide you have been looking for if you ever find yourself short on time to prepare. A systematic approach will take you through the essential steps to prepare, rehearse and deliver an impactful presentation that deliver a memorable message.

Full of examples, samples and suggestions, Speaking with Purpose will take you through a rigorous checklist that ensures you’ll be ready for the big day. Speaking with Purpose is written for the 21st Century presenter who needs to engage an audience with short attention spans. You will learn how to:

  • Save time with a checklist while preparing for a presentation

  • Create a memorable message for all your key points

  • Prepare so that you adjust to your audience’s expectations

  • Organise a flow that matches the purpose of your presentation

  • Write a clear conclusion with call-to-actions

  • Add transitions between sections so that your presentation unfolds smoothly

  • Use connecting phrases to engage and keep the audience’s attention

  • Rehearse so you make the best use of your limited time available

  • Prepare for Q&A so that you are ready for all expected questions

You can download a complimentary PDF one-page handout with the 10 steps and the taglines for each step here.

Advance copies of the Speaking with Purpose workbook are available in electronic form and can be found here.

The workbook will be launched at a conference in Hangzhou later this month and copies will be available for shipping after May 12th 2012.

In a world where we are both increasingly under time-pressure and pressure-to-preform, this is my small contribution to help executives become more effective, more influential and more masterful in their public communications.

In a world where we are both increasingly under time-pressure and pressure-to-preform, this is my small contribution to help executives become more effective, more influential and more masterful in their public communications.

To learn more about Speaking with Purpose…

We conduct one-day and two-day workshops which uses The Speaking with Purpose process as a frame on which we tailor examples and situations relevant to your industry and leadership challenges. You can also order copies of The Speaking with Purpose workbook from us at volume discounts, call us on 021 6101 0486.

All the best,

Feel free to contact us at any time.

Warwick John Fahy and The One Minute Presenter Team

Hong Kong
Level 19 Two International Finance Centre,
8 Finance Street, Central
Hong Kong, China
Tel: +852 3101 7294
Fax: +852 3101 7530

Shanghai
Level 23, Citigroup Tower,
33 Hua Yuan Shi Qiao Road,
Lujiazui, Pudong,
Shanghai 200120

Tel: +86 21 6101 0486
Fax: +86 21 6101 0487
Mob: +86 1391 786 7502

About the Author

Warwick J Fahy

“Warwick helps C-level executives, working in multinational companies based in Greater China, who struggle to get their point across and influence their key stakeholders. Warwick helps the executive project their message with confidence allowing them to express their opinions powerfully and gain respect from senior managers even when under pressure.”Learn more about who I help here.

Warwick is the author of “The One Minute Presenter: 8 steps to successful business presentations in a short attention span world”.

Now available on Amazon.com.

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